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Source: Sfgate Healthy Eating
Salt causes you to retain water, giving you a plumped-up, bloated appearance. The good news is that this is not actually fat, it's simply fluid. The other good news is that this problem can be fixed fairly quickly and prevented altogether by making smart choices about what you eat and drink.
Tip
Sodium does not actually add fat to your face, but the fluid retention caused by too much sodium in your blood can make your face appear fat.
How Sodium Affects Your Body
Sodium is necessary to help your body regulate your blood pressure, and it also supports the electrical impulses that are necessary for all of your bodily functions. Table salt is made up of sodium and chloride, which aids in digestion.
Your kidneys work hard to maintain the proper balance between sodium, potassium and water in your body. If you take in too much sodium, your body retains water to balance it. Having extra water in your blood vessels stretches them, which can allow plaque to build up. Having extra water in your tissues makes you look bloated.
How to Ease Fluid Retention
Though it might seem counter-intuitive, one of the best ways to ease fluid retention is to drink more water. Changing the ratio of sodium, potassium and water in your body by adding water lets your kidneys stop holding onto every drop.
Another way to shift the balance is to take in more potassium. Dried apricots are very high in potassium, at more than 1,500 mg per cup. Acorn squash, avocados, bananas, low-fat yogurt, potatoes, salmon, spinach and white beans are also high in potassium.
Taking a brisk walk, going for a sauna or doing a vigorous workout can also ease the signs of bloating as you sweat out the extra fluid you're retaining. Just make sure to avoid dehydration by drinking plenty of water.
How to Prevent Sodium Bloating
Stop adding salt to everything. Certain foods require a bit of salt to bring out their flavor, such as eggs and pasta. Try cooking with other spices and with citrus juices or wine and always take at least three bites of your food before deciding if it needs salt. If it does, sprinkle the salt into your palm instead of directly onto your food so that you can see exactly how much you're adding.
Eat a diet that is low in sodium. Salt, like sugar, is in almost every type of processed food there is. The worst culprits are mass-produced breads and rolls, processed cold cuts, fried or processed chicken such as nuggets, canned or packaged soup and soup mixes, seasoning mixes and commercially-produced pizza. All fast foods are also loaded with salt. Avoiding these foods or having small occasional portions is the best way to control your sodium levels.
Eat a food that is high in potassium whenever you eat a salty food. This will help keep the sodium, potassium and water levels in your body more stable.
Be careful with alcohol. Drinking depletes the potassium in your body, which will cause your kidneys to once again hoard water. Have not more than one alcoholic drink per hour and consider alternating alcohol with water. Avoid salty snacks when you're drinking, if possible.
Stay hydrated. Drink between 32 and 64 ounces of water every day and supplement it with natural diuretics such as green tea and lemonade.
When my face swelled more than my body, I was afraid of this disproportion! I researched Google in Portuguese, I did not find anything. I researched English, I found this text.
The World Health Organization recommends a maximum of 2 grams of sodium per day (equivalent to 5 grams of cooking salt, which contains 40% sodium).
For these and others I say: Long live Google!
