(Image Source: NHS Choices )     BY CANDICE AVILES     It’s no secret a high salt diet can lead to health problems, but a study shows salt can actually lead to autoimmune diseases.   “The research comes from three studies published in Nature, they looked at impacts to the immune system by focusing on a few key cells and suggests the amount of salt we eat may influence the immune systems balance.”  [Via WMDN ] The researchers used mice and human cells and the results were clear. “Both [researchers] found that in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis, a high-salt diet accelerated the disease’s progression. … Building a very interesting hypothesis that salt may be one of the environmental triggers of autoimmunity.”  [Via Nature ] Autoimmunity is when an organism’s immune cells fails to recognize the body’s healthy tissues and repeatedly attacks them instead. The vice chair of the urology department at NYC’s Mount Sinai Hospital put it in laymans terms on Fox News. [Via News Medical ] “It’s taking your helper cells, your white cells that’s supposed to help you, defend you against your own body, now all of a sudden those cells are going to go after your insulin your pancreas your nervous system like multiple sclerosis.” [Via Fox News ] Other autoimmune diseases include Type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis. According to the National Institutes of Health more than 23 million people have an autoimmune disease. [Via National Institutes of Health ] Researchers don’t recommend a specific course of action moving forward but recommend following “government advice on maintaining a healthy, balanced diet, which includes guidelines on salt intake.”  [Via BBC ] And according to the government the recommended amount is 2,300 milligrams a day, which is about 1 teaspoon of salt. But most Americans tend to consume closer to 3,300 milligrams a day. [Via U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ] So you may want to avoid salt-loaded foods like pizza, breads, processed meats, canned soup, and sandwiches. Or at least eat them in moderation. [Via NHS Choices ]