The FastDay Forum

Reading quite a bit about headaches, does intermittent fasting perhaps require extra salt to compensate for loss of sodium as reduced carbs / glycogen depletion flushes water out of your system ?

The Genesis UK 5:2 breast cancer diet included an optional salty low calorie drink.

Not sure, I haven't looked in this. Salt was/is my big sin. Since starting 5:2 I’ve definitely take in less salt. I've had a sore head a few times which I put down to this but I am not going to add salt to compensate. I'm sure I’m better off for taking on less salt and my sore heads are less often already.

[carorees]

I think so, yes. But don't overdo it! I usually have a couple of mugs of vegetable stock, which is quite salty for "lunch"on fast days (10 cals). It seems to help with hunger and headaches. If I have more than that, though, I get ridiculously thirsty.

Salt's (well, sodium) key to our bodily functions, as my kidneys work and I have normal blood pressure it isn't something I limit but I do observe people with symptoms of inadequate intake.

A large Cochrane review concluded that salt intake wasn't an issue for normotensive subjects, as does a recent paper http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... x/abstract

Seems that the natrophobes are like the lipophobes and building castles on quicksand.