The term ‘Chloride’ is frequently confused with ‘Chlorine’ by the general public. But in terms of use, they are both different.
For instance, chloride is needed for our bodies, whereas chlorine is used to sanitize water and houses. Furthermore, chloride is extremely beneficial to our health.
But every coin has two sides, right?
In this article, we’ve covered the Chloride health benefits, dosage, safety, side effects, and everything else you need to know about it.
So, what’s holding you back from reading and learning everything? Let’s find out.
What Is Chloride?
Chloride is a mineral that is commonly known as sodium chloride or table salt. However, it may also be found in sea salt, seaweed, shrimp, ketchup, and other foods.
Some people may use this as a medication or a supplement. And we’ll get to that just after discussing the health benefits of chloride.
Chloride − Health Benefits, Dosage, Safety, and Side Effects
Chloride is an electrolyte that works mostly with other electrolytes like sodium, potassium, and carbon dioxide. Well, let’s not discuss all these scientific terms and confuse you.
Just know that chloride is an important mineral or component that our body needs to function smoothly.
Health Benefits of Chloride
Chloride consumption is really important for our body, and it has some really amazing and shocking health benefits.
We’ve highlighted them below for your convenience −
- The first benefit is that chloride balances our body fluids (including pH level and blood pressure).
- It aids our body cells in the intake and expulsion of water, other nutrients, and compounds.
- It helps transfer messages from the body to the brain and vice versa.
- It is also one of the most vital fluids in the human digestive system.
- Chloride also helps the lungs inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide.
Chloride Dosage
Chloride dosage varies from person to person depending on age, sex, and life stage.
Adequate Intakes of chloride for different ages, sex, and life-stage are stated below−
- Infants of 0 to 6 months and 7 to 12 months old need 0.18 grams/day and 0.57 grams/day, respectively.
- Children of age 1-3 years, 4-8 years, and 9 to 13 years need 1.5 grams, 1.9 grams, and 2.3 grams per day, respectively.
- Adequate intake for males and females −
Aged 14 to 50 is (2.3 grams per day), aged 51 to 70 is (2.0 g/day), and aged 71 and over is (1.8 g/day).
- Females who are pregnant or lactating should consume 2.3 g per day.
People Consume Chloride in Different Ways
The general public consumes chloride in the form of sodium chloride or table salt.
Unprocessed foods, like raw and unprocessed fish, meat, and vegetables, contain chloride, but in very small amounts.
Fruits and vegetables have 1 milligram of chloride per gram of food. Thus, eating fruits and vegetables every day is necessary.
Well, some people also take chloride tablets for medicinal purposes due to a lack of chloride in their bodies or any other health issue.
Safety Precautions You Need to Keep in Mind
Chloride does not have any major risks at all. But if you are taking chloride as a medicine, then make sure to follow all the instructions given by your doctor.
And special attention goes to pregnant and lactating women so that they either don’t lack or overdose on chloride.
An overdose of chloride might cause some side effects.
Side Effects of Chloride
As said earlier, chloride does not do any major harm to our health. However, exceeding 3.5 g per day is harmful to one’s health.
Please Keep in Mind − When adding to processed or cooked foods, this limit can be exceeded while remaining safe.
However, if your body receives too much chloride in any form or tablet, it may experience the side effects listed below −
- High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, can cause heart or kidney disease and irregular heartbeats
- Excessive sweating and tiredness
- Nausea and fatigue
- Swelling in different body parts
- Skin redness and troubled breathing
Well, some people may also face some other side effects. So always make sure to consult a doctor to stay on the safe side. Especially pregnant and lactating women.
The Closure
Closing up this discussion about Chloride health benefits, dosage, safety, side effects, and other necessary information with a warm thanks for being concerned about your or your family’s health.
Now you know what to do and what not to do, be careful, make sure not to overdose, and enjoy chloride intake!
References −
Berend K, van Hulsteijn LH, Gans RO. Chloride: the queen of electrolytes? Eur J Intern Med. 2012 Apr;23(3):203-11. doi: 10.1016/j.ejim.2011.11.013. Epub 2011 Dec 21. PMID: 22385875. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22385875/
EFSA Panel on Nutrition, Novel Foods and Food Allergens (NDA), Turck D, Castenmiller J, de Henauw S, Hirsch-Ernst KI, Kearney J, Knutsen HK, Maciuk A, Mangelsdorf I, McArdle HJ, Pelaez C, Pentieva K, Siani A, Thies F, Tsabouri S, Vinceti M, Aggett P, Fairweather-Tait S, Martin A, Przyrembel H, de Sesmaisons-Lecarré A, Naska A. Dietary reference values for chloride. EFSA J. 2019 Sep 4;17(9):e05779. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2019.5779. PMID: 32626426; PMCID: PMC7009052. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7009052/
McCallum L, Lip S, Padmanabhan S. The hidden hand of chloride in hypertension. Pflugers Arch. 2015 Mar;467(3):595-603. doi: 10.1007/s00424-015-1690-8. Epub 2015 Jan 27. PMID: 25619794; PMCID: PMC4325190. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4325190/
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