Scientists from the University of Hasselt in Belgium found that eating too much salt is not only bad for our blood pressure and cardiovascular system, but also for the immune system. business results published in the journal Cell Metabolism.
Excessive salt intake disrupts energy metabolism in key immune regulators called T cells. According to the authors, the findings may provide new opportunities to study the development of autoimmune and cardiovascular diseases.
T cells are responsible for maintaining balance: They control immune responses so as not to harm the body. Scientists believe that dysregulation of T cells is associated with the development of autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
Scientists conducted an experiment in which they exposed seahorses to salt. The authors found that after one day the energy activity of T cells was significantly reduced. What’s more, the researchers noticed that excess salt makes T cells similar to cells involved in autoimmune conditions.
However, scientists don’t yet know exactly how sodium disrupts cell function – they hope to answer this question in their future work.