Salt poisoning
Medical condition / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Salt poisoning is an intoxication resulting from the excessive intake of sodium (usually as sodium chloride) in either solid form or in solution (saline water, including brine, brackish water, or seawater). Salt poisoning sufficient to produce severe symptoms is rare, and lethal salt poisoning is possible but even rarer. The lethal dose of table salt is roughly 0.5–1g per kg of body weight.[1]
Salt poisoning | |
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Other names | Sodium poisoning |
High resolution image of a grain of sea salt. Sea salt is one of the most common causes of sodium poisoning. |
In medicine, the circumstance of salt poisoning is most frequently encountered in children or infants[2][3] who may be made to consume excessive amounts of table salt. At least one instance of murder of a hospitalized child by salt poisoning has been reported.[4]
Too much salt intake in adults can also occur from the drinking of seawater, pickled goods, brine water or the drinking of soy sauce.[5] Salt poisoning has also been seen in a number of adults with mental health problems.[6]
Salt poisoning can affect most species of animals, although it is more common in swine, cattle, and poultry.[7]