Low Sodium

ckays82

We've been messing around with low sodium recipes and tweaking favorite meals to incorporate less salt if none at all. When my fiancé had open heart surgery a few months ago to replace his aortic valve, he's had to really start paying attention to what he eats. He's an extremely fit person and when he was diagnosed with a heart murmur, even his doctor was baffled. He had a large embolism in his valve due to a birth defect that he wasn't aware of. Turned out to be a pretty dire situation when they first discovered it and thankfully he had it fixed within a few weeks. Scary stuff, but he's a strong guy and doing great!

It's only been a few months since then, but since his heart is still healing, sticking to a heart healthy diet is very important. I was up to the challenge since high blood pressure runs in my family and I wanted to start paying attention to how much sodium I was consuming too. It takes getting some used to and I've learned to make my own condensed soup mixes if a recipe calls for cream of chicken or cream of mushroom, which can pack a punch in the way of salt. I lost 15 pounds on MFP and I've kept it off for 2 years, but I've got in the habit of eating fatty cheeses and meats as my main source of protein. Great for loosing weight if low carb/high protein is your thing, but not great if salt is now your enemy!

Any suggestions for the people out there that are watching their sodium intake? Foods to avoid and foods that are great for low blood pressure?

Kalikel

My best advice is something you seem to have figured out: Make your own food. Processed stuff is just loaded with sodium.

Play around with food combinations and use herbs and spices to make the food taste good. After a few months, you won't miss the salt anymore and if you eat something you once enjoyed, you'll be shocked at how awful and salty it tastes.

Keep at it. You'll be SO glad you did.

Yi5hedr3

For some folks, it's not that they are getting too much Sodium, but that they are very deficient in Potassium. There is a balancing act here, and hardly ever is the importance of Potassium mentioned.

amberlyda1

I have to eat low sodium. I have high blood pressure from gaining weight. Honestly I personally think its all about changing your pallet. My husband always adds salt to his food...when he cooks I can taste the sodium. I only buy low sodium soups or broth. I never add salt. Stay away from processed food and cook from scratch. I found adding onion, garlic and spices make up for the lack of salt...hot sauce helps too

markrgeary1

I eat low sodium because of bp. Like you mentioned soups are full of salt, most packaged foods too. If I can I'll make my own as your doing. For things I don't care to do myself, canned tomatoes for example, there's low and no sodium varieties. I gave up deli meat too, we still eat cheese but watch it.

Like suggested you can add different spices and soon you won't know it's not salted. When that happens watch it, anytime you taste something salty it might make you sick. Some folks use the salt substitutes I've never been a fan but it might help you during the process. Glad your SO is on the mend.

I guess if cheese is your main protein your not eating meat? How about eggs, beans, quinoa???

lmnconn

Mrs. Dash has lots of different flavors available. I've heard of adding lemon juice to things is a good substitute for salt. Soups are so difficult. Even the low sodium varieties are high in sodium. Any homemade recipes I find still have chicken broth or beef broth as the base. The no sodium versions of these have no taste.

amberlyda1

lmnconn wrote: »

Mrs. Dash has lots of different flavors available. I've heard of adding lemon juice to things is a good substitute for salt. Soups are so difficult. Even the low sodium varieties are high in sodium. Any homemade recipes I find still have chicken broth or beef broth as the base. The no sodium versions of these have no taste.

I found Trader Joes broth and it only has 90 mg per serving!

LKArgh

Prepare everything from scratch if possible, carefully check labels when buying anything prepackaged or in a can.
Be careful when buying cheese, some kinds have very high sodium levels. Usually you can tell by the taste. Most deli meats also are high in sodium.
Try different spices when cooking. Also lemon.

Kalikel

lmnconn wrote: »

Mrs. Dash has lots of different flavors available. I've heard of adding lemon juice to things is a good substitute for salt. Soups are so difficult. Even the low sodium varieties are high in sodium. Any homemade recipes I find still have chicken broth or beef broth as the base. The no sodium versions of these have no taste.

Mrs. Dash is a great way to start cutting salt! That advice was the first advice I got when I began the road to healthy eating (where salt was related) and although I've branched out a lot when it comes to herbs and spices, I still keep a few bottles of Mrs. Dash around.

ckays82

Good advice! I love Mrs. Dash and the marinade varieties they have if I'm pressed for time and can't make my own for a dinner. I'm amazed how your pallet can chance once you start letting go of salt. It makes going out to eat a little crazy, but having more meals at home is healthier and easier on the wallet. Deli meat is defiantly a major issue in our house. He loves making hot sandwiches for lunch, so we picked up some no salt added turkey breast and half joked how much he was missing salt. He really wanted some ham and I thought, no biggie, how bad could it be? His BP went from 120 to 145 after a week of ham sandwiches, so yeah, stay away from that stuff.

ckays82

amberlyda1 wrote: »

lmnconn wrote: »

Mrs. Dash has lots of different flavors available. I've heard of adding lemon juice to things is a good substitute for salt. Soups are so difficult. Even the low sodium varieties are high in sodium. Any homemade recipes I find still have chicken broth or beef broth as the base. The no sodium versions of these have no taste.

I found Trader Joes broth and it only has 90 mg per serving!

No Trader Joes in my neck of the woods, so maybe Fresh Market would be a good place to check for things like that!

T1DCarnivoreRunner

You have some ideas for cutting sodium, but have you considered increasing potassium intake? A study released in 2009 (I don't have time to look for it, but it shouldn't be hard to find) found a missing link in prior studies. Those prior studies showed that high sodium intake increases risk for heart disease. Other prior studies showed that low potassium intake increases risk for heart disease. This study found that those with a high sodium intake AND a high potassium intake did NOT have an elevated risk of heart disease... their risk was statistically equivalent to subjects with a moderate level of sodium intake.

Kalikel

ckays82 wrote: »

amberlyda1 wrote: »

lmnconn wrote: »

Mrs. Dash has lots of different flavors available. I've heard of adding lemon juice to things is a good substitute for salt. Soups are so difficult. Even the low sodium varieties are high in sodium. Any homemade recipes I find still have chicken broth or beef broth as the base. The no sodium versions of these have no taste.

I found Trader Joes broth and it only has 90 mg per serving!

No Trader Joes in my neck of the woods, so maybe Fresh Market would be a good place to check for things like that!

Making your own is very easy and the taste is like 1,000,000 times better! But our regular grocery stores carry no-sodium stocks and broths. And our grocery stores suck compared to most parts of the country. We have very little selection, but we have that. So, check your stores!

Queenmunchy

Kalikel wrote: »

ckays82 wrote: »

amberlyda1 wrote: »

lmnconn wrote: »

Mrs. Dash has lots of different flavors available. I've heard of adding lemon juice to things is a good substitute for salt. Soups are so difficult. Even the low sodium varieties are high in sodium. Any homemade recipes I find still have chicken broth or beef broth as the base. The no sodium versions of these have no taste.

I found Trader Joes broth and it only has 90 mg per serving!

No Trader Joes in my neck of the woods, so maybe Fresh Market would be a good place to check for things like that!

Making your own is very easy and the taste is like 1,000,000 times better! But our regular grocery stores carry no-sodium stocks and broths. And our grocery stores suck compared to most parts of the country. We have very little selection, but we have that. So, check your stores!

If you don't want to make your own from bones/scraps (I just freeze them all until I have enough to make broth), Pacific (along with TJ) is 70mg for their low sodium chicken broth. Herb-Ox bouillon is pretty widespread and comes in a no sodium version.

Kalikel

Queenmunchy wrote: »

Kalikel wrote: »

ckays82 wrote: »

amberlyda1 wrote: »

lmnconn wrote: »

Mrs. Dash has lots of different flavors available. I've heard of adding lemon juice to things is a good substitute for salt. Soups are so difficult. Even the low sodium varieties are high in sodium. Any homemade recipes I find still have chicken broth or beef broth as the base. The no sodium versions of these have no taste.

I found Trader Joes broth and it only has 90 mg per serving!

No Trader Joes in my neck of the woods, so maybe Fresh Market would be a good place to check for things like that!

Making your own is very easy and the taste is like 1,000,000 times better! But our regular grocery stores carry no-sodium stocks and broths. And our grocery stores suck compared to most parts of the country. We have very little selection, but we have that. So, check your stores!

If you don't want to make your own from bones/scraps (I just freeze them all until I have enough to make broth), Pacific (along with TJ) is 70mg for their low sodium chicken broth. Herb-Ox bouillon is pretty widespread and comes in a no sodium version.

I make my own. Those store-bought ones cannot compare in taste. Home-made stock...it's like an entirely different product, almost. Is SO much better.

I save my bits, too. I like the feeling of getting something for nothing.

amberlyda1

Kalikel wrote: »

Queenmunchy wrote: »

Kalikel wrote: »

ckays82 wrote: »

amberlyda1 wrote: »

lmnconn wrote: »

Mrs. Dash has lots of different flavors available. I've heard of adding lemon juice to things is a good substitute for salt. Soups are so difficult. Even the low sodium varieties are high in sodium. Any homemade recipes I find still have chicken broth or beef broth as the base. The no sodium versions of these have no taste.

I found Trader Joes broth and it only has 90 mg per serving!

No Trader Joes in my neck of the woods, so maybe Fresh Market would be a good place to check for things like that!

Making your own is very easy and the taste is like 1,000,000 times better! But our regular grocery stores carry no-sodium stocks and broths. And our grocery stores suck compared to most parts of the country. We have very little selection, but we have that. So, check your stores!

If you don't want to make your own from bones/scraps (I just freeze them all until I have enough to make broth), Pacific (along with TJ) is 70mg for their low sodium chicken broth. Herb-Ox bouillon is pretty widespread and comes in a no sodium version.

I make my own. Those store-bought ones cannot compare in taste. Home-made stock...it's like an entirely different product, almost. Is SO much better.

I save my bits, too. I like the feeling of getting something for nothing.

same here i love making my own broth....some days I just dont have the time . Nothing compares to homemade. My freezer is full of random bones, meat bits and black bananas and egg shells. yeah its weird lol

mom2colbyj

Swanson's has no added sodium beef and chicken broths. Savory Spice Shop has quite a few spice blends without sodium that are really good. They have an online store with free shipping on all orders over $30. I try and cook all my meals at home so I control the sodium. I read all labels on all foods before I buy them. I've bought sodium free baking supplies like baking soda and baking powder. http://www.lowsodiumcooking.com/ is a great website and I have one of his cookbooks that I really enjoy using the recipes.