Low sodium in the blood: causes and which doctor to see (in Gujarati)

Summary

This is a Gujarati television interview in which Dr. Om answers common questions about low sodium in the blood, a problem doctors call hyponatraemia.

Many people assume low sodium is a kidney problem, or that it can be fixed by eating more salt. He explains that the kidney acts as a gatekeeper, but hormones control how much sodium the body keeps. If those hormones are not working, extra salt is simply passed out in the urine. Taking more salt helps only in some situations, so the cause needs to be found first.

The hormone causes he discusses include:

• The pituitary gland, the master gland behind the forehead, which controls several other hormones.
• The adrenal glands, which make cortisol, the stress hormone the body needs more of during illness, fever or injury.
• A severely underactive thyroid, which can lower sodium when the TSH is very high.

He also explains why speed matters. A slow fall in sodium allows the body to adapt and can be managed in the clinic with regular checks. A sudden fall can cause confusion or seizures, especially in older people, and needs emergency care in hospital rather than home remedies.

Recorded when Dr. Om worked at a previous hospital; he now practises at AB Plus Hospital.

An endocrinologist can work out which hormone is responsible. Read about who an endocrinologist is and about pituitary apoplexy, a pituitary emergency.