“There was a reason why you liked salty foods like pickled seafood.

Eating a lot of salty foods like pickled seafood increases the risk of high blood pressure. Yet, some people crave salty foods. If you find food you eat out to be more delicious than home-cooked meals, it could be due to the increased salt (sodium), sugar, and seasonings added to the food.

A new study suggests that salt cravings are triggered by the hormone aldosterone acting on specific neurons in the brainstem. A research team at the University of Iowa in the United States announced that aldosterone, a hormone produced by an endocrine gland above the kidneys, acts on HSD2 neurons in the brain, triggering the desire to consume salt.

 

Sodium, a critical nutrient in salt, is crucial. If sodium levels are too low, blood volume decreases, which can lead to serious health problems. Conversely, if sodium levels are too high, it can lead to high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease. "Understanding the brain circuits that regulate salt cravings is challenging," said Joel Gearing, Associate Professor of Neurology and corresponding author of the study. "We've identified a new neuron, the HSD2 neuron, that is closely related to this."

According to the research team, there are triangular endocrine glands called the adrenal glands located above each kidney. The adrenal cortex secretes aldosterone, cortisol, and sex hormones, while the adrenal medulla secretes catecholamines. Dr. Silvia Gasparini (postdoctoral researcher, neurology), the lead author of the study, said, “Aldosterone, a key hormone that regulates sodium levels, is normally produced when there is a shortage of body fluids, including blood.” For example, the adrenal cortex produces aldosterone when you do not drink enough water, sweat, have blood loss, or suffer from an illness that causes vomiting or diarrhea.

 

Aldosterone helps maintain fluid balance in the body by telling organs like the kidneys to retain sodium. However, if aldosterone levels are too high, it can lead to a condition called "primary" adrenocorticism (aldosteronism), which has an unknown cause and can lead to severe high blood pressure. Aldosteronism is the cause of high blood pressure in 10-30% of people with high blood pressure. Patients with high blood pressure due to adrenocorticism are three times more likely to develop stroke, heart failure, and arrhythmias (abnormal heart rhythms) than those without high blood pressure. However, the reasons for this remain unclear.

 

Previous studies have shown that hypertensive patients with adrenocorticism (aldosteronism) consume significantly more salt than other hypertensive patients. The research team has now confirmed that when the diet of mice is low in sodium, aldosterone production and salt intake increase. They also found that the activity of HSD2 neurons in the brainstem increases. “The most interesting thing is that HSD2 neurons are expressed in humans, mice, and pigs,” said Dr. Gasparini. “There are about 1,000 HSD2 neurons in humans and about 200 in mice.” Since this study has identified the genetic identity and location of neurons that control the desire to eat retroactively, it is expected to be helpful in developing therapeutic strategies to promote the desire for sodium intake in patients with low blood pressure and reduce excessive salt intake in patients with adrenocorticism.

 

The results of this study (Aldosterone-induced salt appetite requires HSD2 neurons) were published in the journal JCI Insight, published by the American Society of Clinical Investigators (ASCI).

 

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There are people who particularly like salty foods like pickled seafood.

Salty foods are said to increase the risk of high blood pressure, kidney disease, and stomach cancer.

 

We call salted seafood a rice thief.

I think there's always salted seafood at my house too.

 

High blood pressure and kidney problems should be kept in mind.