I was banded on Feb 27. Just 15 days ago and I have lost 17 lbs so far. It is slowing down though. That's okay, I expected it, but I think the problem is my salt intake. I can't get enough. The more I get the more I want. It is getting very annoying. I know it is BAD for me. I know I should not eat so much salt. I am "BINGE SALTING"!!

I need to QUIT!!! Has anyone else had this problem?

I am not hungry at all. I do seem to have problems getting enough protein into my diet too. Right now, my diet consists mainly of cottage cheese (with salt), sardines (with salt,pepper and vinegar), soft cooked eggs (with salt), Glucerna (I'm diabetic), jello, puddings, yogurt and smoothies made with soymilk/instant breakfast. I'm probably not getting enough calories each day either. Usually 5 servings of any of the above is all I eat.

Is it my diet? Please help me stop "BINGE SALTING"!! Thanks to all......

Ms. Vicki

banded 02/27/06:faint:

starting wt 338

current wt 321

goal 138

Not sure if it will be helpful for you, but when I am craving salt like all get out, I either load up my food with the Mrs. Dash stuff OR I have a serving of roasted, salted soy nuts. Soy Nuts have lots of protein and I find them quite yummy

Edit: I noticed after I posted you might be on mushies right now - in that case soy nut butter would be a better alternative.

Also, I find I crave salt when I am not drinking enough water....

Thanks......I love soy nuts. I bet it could be a water thing. I try to drink a lot but get busy at work and forget to SIP, SIP, SIP!

Cravings like that can come from dietary deficiencies. Calcium is one that is thought to trigger a salt craving. I see you're fairly newly banded - are you keeping up with your multivitamin, calcium, etc?

Yup, yup.. water was my first thought. You should be beyond sipping now and should be able to drink freely.

Didn't know about the calcium, but when we crave things it's usually brought on by the body crying out for something it needs - or "thinks" it needs.

Let us know if the suggestions help ya.

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I hadn't heard about the calcium thing so I looked up salt cravings and check this out:

The craving: salt

According to Somer, many women experience salt cravings related to premenstrual syndrome (PMS) since fluctuating levels of estrogen can interfere with the normal salt concentration in the body. Unfortunately, cravings for salt often result in the consumption of foods that are not only high in sodium -- dangerous for anyone with hypertension -- but also heavy in fat (think chips, French fries, pizza). Some studies have shown that people who are deficient in calcium crave salt more frequently than those who are not. And Somer suggests the desire for salty foods, such as chips or pretzels, may have more to do with the wish to crunch than the actual salt.

The solution: Try upping your calcium intake (which will also benefit your bones) with low-fat dairy foods or leafy greens. And reach for crisp, fresh, munch-able foods, like baby carrots or bell pepper wedges -- they make great stand-ins for that pretzel or chip crunch. If you can't forgo the salt, eat just one serving of low-fat, whole-grain pretzels.

Here's the link: http://www.bluedragonfly.org/nastycravings.html

When I was a kid my parents had an ice cream maker and I would sneak handfuls of rock salt. We lived by our neighborhood's baseball fields and I'd go sit in the bleachers, watch games, and snack on rock salt like it was popcorn.

My parents were worried so they took me to the doc and he's the one I heard about it from. It made sense, because I never really drank milk and have hardly touched it since I was about 8... and wasn't much on yogurt, cheese, etc. either.

He told my parents to give me 1200mg calcium a day. About 4 days later the salt cravings went away.

Too bad the admiration for cheeses came in its place.

I'll increase my calcium (I too love cheese). You guys are great! I'm new to the banding "scene", but I want you to know it means a lot to have friends to go to when I need help. I saw no admonishment, only suggestions and neat stories. Thanks to you all. Have a fantastic rest of the day!