Favorite low calorie foods that are high in sodium.
Pricklypineapple422
Posts: 52 Member
I have dysautonomia and need to increase my sodium intake to 5,000 to 7,000 mg a day. I am able to take some salt tablets to help, but they can be hard on the stomach and to get that much sodium I will have to take a ton of the tablets. My goal is to find some foods or drinks that are tasty and not too high in calorie, while also providing some sodium.
I am trying to consume two powerade zeros a day, they provide 250 mg per bottle. But with those added, I am still only averaging around 2000 mg of sodium a day. I don't love the taste of salt, and the things I do like (chips, popcorn, etc) are all high in calories and junk food, which I would like to avoid. Also, I will eat meat occasionally, but mostly eat vegetarian.
I am hopeful some of you might have some suggestions of things you like they pack a punch of sodium.
Thanks!
I am trying to consume two powerade zeros a day, they provide 250 mg per bottle. But with those added, I am still only averaging around 2000 mg of sodium a day. I don't love the taste of salt, and the things I do like (chips, popcorn, etc) are all high in calories and junk food, which I would like to avoid. Also, I will eat meat occasionally, but mostly eat vegetarian.
I am hopeful some of you might have some suggestions of things you like they pack a punch of sodium.
Thanks!
1
Replies
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Pickles and olives.5
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SuzySunshine99 wrote: »Pickles and olives.
I cannot stand the taste of olives - are some less harsh on the palate? I am not a fan of pickles either, but maybe I can try them again and learn to like the taste because that would definitely help me with my sodium intake without a ton of calories. Thank you for the advice!1 -
A lot of frozen meals are low in calories, high in salt. You will usually get at least 600mg for under 300 calories. I also strongly recommend trying to cook things in soy sauce or other asian style sauces. They are usually very high in sodium.5
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I add soy sauce to lots of things and mfp always warns me that it’s high in sodium!2
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Soy sauce is a great idea! I don't know why I didn't think of that before. I'll definitely be making some yummy stir fry this week.1
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This stuff maybe? I love salt, so honestly I could darn near eat this stuff with a spoon sometimes. Or spread it on bread mixed with butter and be sure to not plan on losing any weight. Lol. In addition to sometimes having a cup as bouillon, I've been known to sneak it into scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes/cauliflower, a bowl of cabbage, a cornbread batter, a pot of rice... 680mg of sodium per teaspoon. They also make a vegetarian vegetable, beef, ham, mushroom, possibly others. The chicken is the one I get a lotta use out of though.
Since sodium intake is important for you, you might also consider weighing the salt you use in cooking. May sound a bit much, but depending on how coarse or fine a grind your salt is, it could make a difference of 500mg of sodium or more per teaspoon.3 -
I’ll second the soy sauce!
Also cottage cheese is relatively high in sodium if you’re looking to keep the calories down too.
I don’t know if you eat fish, but canned tuna in brine, quite a lot of sodium in smoked fish of all sorts.
Also, snack on pretzels, salted nuts maybe?2 -
Recommend googling "high sodium foods". I did and there are some good sites, mostly telling you what foods to avoid/limit that are high in sodium, but your case that would be the opposite.1
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Would you believe Tofu is high in sodium. Just found this out now entering it into my food diary.1
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This stuff maybe? I love salt, so honestly I could darn near eat this stuff with a spoon sometimes. Or spread it on bread mixed with butter and be sure to not plan on losing any weight. Lol. In addition to sometimes having a cup as bouillon, I've been known to sneak it into scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes/cauliflower, a bowl of cabbage, a cornbread batter, a pot of rice... 680mg of sodium per teaspoon. They also make a vegetarian vegetable, beef, ham, mushroom, possibly others. The chicken is the one I get a lotta use out of though.
Since sodium intake is important for you, you might also consider weighing the salt you use in cooking. May sound a bit much, but depending on how coarse or fine a grind your salt is, it could make a difference of 500mg of sodium or more per teaspoon.
I bought this a couple weeks ago for a soup recipe so I will try it on other things also. Thank you!1 -
Pamela_Sue wrote: »Recommend googling "high sodium foods". I did and there are some good sites, mostly telling you what foods to avoid/limit that are high in sodium, but your case that would be the opposite.
Thank you!1 -
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BarbaraHelen2013 wrote: »I’ll second the soy sauce!
Also cottage cheese is relatively high in sodium if you’re looking to keep the calories down too.
I don’t know if you eat fish, but canned tuna in brine, quite a lot of sodium in smoked fish of all sorts.
Also, snack on pretzels, salted nuts maybe?
I can definitely do cottage cheese, plus it has a good amount of protein which is always a plus!1 -
Pricklypineapple422 wrote: »
That sounds like either a bad database entry, or some special type of flavored tofu. Plain tofu has very little sodium.3 -
I have also noticed that the frozen pre-cooked chicken (such as Tyson) is loaded with sodium.1
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Another tip (sorry for my 3rd post). Use an online grocery app such as Walmart.com, or a local grocery store, to quickly read through nutrition labels and find foods that meet your need. Don't have to buy anything to use the app.0
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Pricklypineapple422 wrote: »
That sounds like either a bad database entry, or some special type of flavored tofu. Plain tofu has very little sodium.
Thank you for this comment because I checked this out further and you are right, the marinated tofu is high but I just ate organic tofu not marinated which is low in sodium. Thanks0 -
My wife has POTS and she just salts a lot of foods. And more bacon!!!
Also, canned tuna, salmon or soups.0 -
Anchovies are ridiculously low calorie for the flavour they bring, and are exceptionally high in sodium.1
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I add a liberal shake of salt to just about every kind of fruit I eat.0
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People mentioned my favorites already -- olives, pickles, and cottage cheese -- but also just salt your food. Adding salt when cooking improves flavor anyway (you don't need much, but you might want more). I also enjoy some raw veg/fruit with salt -- kohlrabi, radishes, celery, cucumbers, maybe tomatoes, avocado.
Popcorn airpopped and then spray with just a little olive oil (to keep cals down) and then salted.
Cheese and salted nuts aren't low cal, but they are delicious!0 -
Asian sauces are the answer. Soy sauce is just a start, though an excellent one, with 900 mg of sodium per tablespoon. Fish sauce (which is mostly anchovy based) has 1400 mg per tbsp, which is over 50 % more sodium than soy, and is used extensively in Vietnamese, Thai, and related ethnic dishes which are easy to make at home and delicious, such as Vietnamese meatballs or pad se ew beef/chicken/shrimp. Another condiment to consider is Oyster sauce, which has 500 mg sodium per tbsp and is very common in familiar Chinese food -- there are several brands that are much higher in sodium than that 500 mg figure. If you eat Chinese food at all and like it, you already are familiar with the taste of Oyster sauce and like it.
I am an avid wok/Asian cooking enthusiast who also happens to do all the math each time, and can tell you from personal experience you can easily hit 3,000-4,000 sodium for one serving of food if that's what you want to do. A typical Chinese or Thai stir fry can handle 2 tbsp soy, 1 tbsp Oyster, and a dash of Fish before it even starts to taste "salty", and in fact would taste a little bland with that mix, because people are used to more like 3 tbsp soy, 1 tbsp oyster, and hoisin sauce, which also has salt. Plus, you can add a few tsp of salt to a meat marinade before you even get to the sauces.0 -
Sushi and canned soups are usually low in calories but high in sodium, and so are most of the chicken, vegetable or beef stocks or broths, like Swanson. V8 vegetable juice and meat tenderizers, even the unseasoned one.0
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Pricklypineapple422 wrote: »I have dysautonomia and need to increase my sodium intake to 5,000 to 7,000 mg a day. I am able to take some salt tablets to help, but they can be hard on the stomach and to get that much sodium I will have to take a ton of the tablets. My goal is to find some foods or drinks that are tasty and not too high in calorie, while also providing some sodium.
I am trying to consume two powerade zeros a day, they provide 250 mg per bottle. But with those added, I am still only averaging around 2000 mg of sodium a day. I don't love the taste of salt, and the things I do like (chips, popcorn, etc) are all high in calories and junk food, which I would like to avoid. Also, I will eat meat occasionally, but mostly eat vegetarian.
I am hopeful some of you might have some suggestions of things you like they pack a punch of sodium.
Thanks!
I also have sodium deficiency and have been for few years. They call mine Hypernutrimia. I am constantly thirsty but have to be mindful because my body gets rid of sodium rapidly. There is something called Sole water. There are recipes on line. Its Himilayan salt diffused in water. Vitamin Shoppe sells something called Trace minerals, they are drops for water that help. Putting electrolytes without sugar in water for throughout the day too.
Nutritionally it may help to eat seaweed, sea greens, celery and if you eat fish, anchovies may help.
Steer clear of duretics, fluid loss and excess sweating. Being in a dry climate or hot weather can take sodium out too.
I had to be hospitalised on IV twice for sodium depletion. The first time was a whole week, my heart almost stopped! I had been on 2 medications then a diuretic. The doctor and I did not know about chronic low sodium deficiency.0 -
Canned soups. I just had a can of condensed chicken noodle soup for lunch, 150 cals and 2225 mg of sodium.0
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Food Club brand (Piggly Wiggly store brand). I normally don't touch the stuff with a 10-foot pole but I'm not feeling well today and it was the only thing that sounded good.0 -
Progresso soups are about 900 mg of sodium per serving (the low sodium ones are 1/2 of that), But 2225 mg of sodium is really a lot for people that don't need to keep the sodium update higher.
Note to self: don't buy that brand!0 -
soy sauce tastes great on so many things, and as others have said, is high in sodium.Would you believe Tofu is high in sodium. Just found this out now entering it into my food diary.
it's only high in sodium if other ingredients have been added, as they often are in baked tofu. if yours was plain tofu, you might want to find a more accurate listing in the database.Pricklypineapple422 wrote: »
here's the nutrition info for my favorite tofu
https://www.traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/article/4698
15 mg sodium, so very low.0 -
V8 or vegetable juice
Celery naturally has sodium
Broths/soups can be made salty
Buffalo sauce/hot sauce has crazy high sodium like 400mg per serving and like no calories
Soy sauce
Cottage cheese salty and great protein
Tajín is a Chile powder/salt seasoning that goes good on fruits and vegetables (cucumbers are good this way, especially w lime juice)
Salted nuts aren’t low calorie but a good snack choice and for whatever reason always seem to help me a lot vs chips or something, for whatever reason a handful of nuts+a Gatorade is my go to
Dip/soup mixes (ranch etc) can be added to a lot of recipes for flavor and are usually high sodium
Multiple spice blends that use salt can go together and the extra spices kind of override the saltiness a little bit
Also, salt everything—I never used to like salt on foods and never salted things outside of a recipe/meat like vegetables, salads, sandwiches. But you can always add a bit of salt and pepper to everything0
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