Treatment · Autonomic
Salt and fluid loading
The first and cheapest step for a racing, dizzy circulation: give it more volume to work with. Raising fluids and salt is foundational for POTS and orthostatic intolerance, though it is not right for everyone and works best alongside other measures.
Short version: more fluids and salt expand blood volume and ease standing symptoms. Low-cost and first-line, but check with a clinician if you have high blood pressure, heart, or kidney issues.
The first thing most people try
Raising fluid and salt intake expands blood volume, giving the circulation more to work with so less pools in the legs on standing. It is a foundational, low-cost step for POTS and orthostatic intolerance.1
What the evidence says
Reviews place increased dietary sodium and fluids among the reasonable first-line measures, though the trial evidence is limited and mostly extrapolated from general POTS rather than long COVID specifically.2, 3
first-line, low-risk limited trial data
Doing it safely
Typical guidance is generous fluids across the day and added salt, but this is not for everyone: people with high blood pressure, heart failure, or kidney disease need clinician sign-off first. Pair it with slow position changes and compression.
What we don't know
Honest about the edges of the evidence. These are open questions, not settled answers.
- How much sodium and fluid is optimal, which has never been tested rigorously in long COVID.
- Who benefits most.
- How it compares head-to-head with compression or medication.
- Whether benefit lasts.
References
Every reference is free to read in full.