Water and electrolyte balance

Water and electrolyte balance is dealt with fully in Chapter 10. Approximately 1 litre of water per day is required in the diet to balance insensible losses, but much more is usually drunk, the kidneys being able to excrete large quantities. The daily RNI for sodium is 70 mmol (1.6 g) but daily sodium intake varies in the range of 90- 440 mmol (2-10 g). These are needlessly high intakes which are thought by some workers to playa role in causing hypertension.