There's table salt, sea salt, Celtic salt, Peruvian Pink, Hawaiian Black Lava, Himalayan, and fleur de sel. But whatever marketers call it, whatever it costs, and whatever its pedigree, salt is simply sodium chloride (NaCl)- and despite trendy claims to the contrary, it's bad for you. The excessive level of sodium in the modern American diet has caused an epidemic of high blood pressure, which can lead to strokes, kidney damage, heart attack, or cancer. The human body was designed to get its optimal level of sodium from a natural diet, but most Americans consume about four times what they need. — Joel Fuhrman (End of Heart Disease, Chapter 6: Salt is a Four-Letter Word).

If you're the type of person who likes to season their food with salt and pepper, how much salt is too much? Well, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends adults should limit their sodium intake to less than 2,300 mg per day.

Dr. Joel Fuhrman discusses how too much salt increases the risk of getting a stroke. He also talks about the two types of stroke (embolic and hemorrhagic) and how salt triggers these strokes.

He also delves into the role of medical care and the adverse effects of certain drugs on various health diseases like hypertension and diabetes.

Learning about nutritional health is not a walk in the park, but this video might help you set your nutrition guide. Keep watching and find out more about salt intake, hypertension, and diabetes.

These and other health-related videos are streamed for educational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice.