EATING salt could increase weight loss, a shocking new study has claimed.
Defying previously-held theories, the new research claimed Russian cosmonauts were hungrier when they ate more salt because their bodies turned fat into water.
Nutritionists advise that more than 6g of salt a day can severely affect health.
It is widely-thought that eating too much can INCREASE weight as the body retains more water.
But researchers at the elite Harvard University said the new findings were "fascinating".
Dr. Melanie Hoenig, an assistant professor of medicine at the American university, told the New York Times: "This is just very novel and fascinating.
"The work was meticulously done.”
Top medical professor Dr James Johnston hailed the findings as "really cool".
German researcher Dr. Jens Titze had undertaken tests on Russian cosmonauts on the Mir space station.
He noticed that despite eating more salt on set days, the space adventurers drank less water.
This went against previously-held beliefs that eating more salt causes someone to drink more.
Despite taking on less water, the crew were still urinating similar amounts - meaning water was being produced without drinking.
One explanation offered was that the cosmonauts bodies were breaking down fat to produce fluids.
Titze added: "There was only one way to explain this phenomenon.
"The body most likely had generated or produced water when salt intake was high.”
His research also found that mice ate 25 per cent more just to maintain their weight when they ate more salt.
The NHS warns that Brits should stick to 6g of salt per day.
It advises: "Many of us in the UK eat too much salt. Too much salt can raise your blood pressure, which puts you at increased risk of health problems such as heart disease and stroke. But a few simple steps can help you to cut your salt intake.
"You don't have to add salt to food to be eating too much – 75 per cent of the salt we eat is already in everyday foods such as bread, breakfast cereal and ready meals.
"A diet that is high in salt can cause raised blood pressure, which currently affects more than one third of adults in the UK."
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