Measuring Sodium

Grenners1968
Grenners1968 Posts: 4 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hello all, I have searched for my answer but can't find anything close to help me.
I really enjoy Heinz no added sugar tomato soup, yet the fitness pal says it contains 1600mg of sodium, I can't find this data anywhere else, is it correct ?
Many thanks.

Replies

  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    What do you mean you can't find data anywhere else? Did you go to Heinz website or look at the label?
  • sarah7591
    sarah7591 Posts: 415 Member
    edited August 2021
    I can’t give you an answer but I do know soups are loaded with sodium! Is there any info on the nutritional label?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Grenners1968 wrote: »
    Hello all, I have searched for my answer but can't find anything close to help me.
    I really enjoy Heinz no added sugar tomato soup, yet the fitness pal says it contains 1600mg of sodium, I can't find this data anywhere else, is it correct ?
    Many thanks.

    It should be listed on the label. Processed foods like canned soup have a lot of sodium...it's part of what makes them shelf stable.
  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,996 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    Grenners1968 wrote: »
    Hello all, I have searched for my answer but can't find anything close to help me.
    I really enjoy Heinz no added sugar tomato soup, yet the fitness pal says it contains 1600mg of sodium, I can't find this data anywhere else, is it correct ?
    Many thanks.

    It should be listed on the label. Processed foods like canned soup have a lot of sodium...it's part of what makes them shelf stable.

    I tried googling it and the sodium in British food labels didn’t translate easily for this foggy-brained USAian.

    For what it’s worth, the label says 0.4 grams per 100 grams, and .08 grams per half can.

    Which seems to indicate 1600mg sodium per can is accurate. But check my math, for sure. I have only had one coffee so far today.



    Oh. Also? Cilantro tastes like soap.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    edited August 2021
    You haven't mentioned the size of the can (different sizes are available) and if you had the whole can to yourself or not.....

    The label on a 400g can of Heinz Tomato Soup (maybe different variety to yours though) in my cupboard says 2.2g of salt (note salt not sodium is listed on UK labelling commonly) for the whole can. That's 880mg of sodium if my maths is correct.

    What does the label say on your can?

    Much of the food database has been entered by users and salt/sodium is commonly inaccurate.
    It may relate to a recipe used in a different market, or it could be an out of date entry that was right once but is no longer correct. Lots of possibilities to be wrong.

    Find one of the options that agrees with your actual label and that will be saved in your recent foods for use again.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,122 Member
    MargaretYakoda wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    Grenners1968 wrote: »
    Hello all, I have searched for my answer but can't find anything close to help me.
    I really enjoy Heinz no added sugar tomato soup, yet the fitness pal says it contains 1600mg of sodium, I can't find this data anywhere else, is it correct ?
    Many thanks.

    It should be listed on the label. Processed foods like canned soup have a lot of sodium...it's part of what makes them shelf stable.

    I tried googling it and the sodium in British food labels didn’t translate easily for this foggy-brained USAian.

    For what it’s worth, the label says 0.4 grams per 100 grams, and .08 grams per half can.

    Which seems to indicate 1600mg sodium per can is accurate. But check my math, for sure. I have only had one coffee so far today.



    Oh. Also? Cilantro tastes like soap.

    Nope. 0.08 grams per half can = 0.16 grams per full can = 160 mg per full can.

    But did the label say sodium? I think some countries' labeling lists salt, not sodium, so it includes the weight of the chlorine in the salt molecules as well as the sodium. I don't know if the U.K. is one of the countries that do that.
  • Grenners1968
    Grenners1968 Posts: 4 Member
    Amazing answers, thank you all so much.
    I did look on the label, and checked their website, but couldn't find the exact sodium quantity, and it is a 400g can, and I do have it all myself.
    The problem I have is that at 1600mg, that blows my sodium intake sky high.

    Thanks again for all your advice.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,354 Member
    Not knowing what country you are in makes it difficult to help, but basically, this is a math question, or better, just compare the nutrition information on the label of the soup to the information on Myfitnesspal. If they match up, the amount of sodium from the serving you enter will be the sodium amount.

    So why are you worried about sodium? Do you have high blood pressure that is negatively affected by sodium consumption? If you don't have health issues that make sodium a huge issue, I would say don't worry about it excessively. Frankly, if you want to reduce sodium you need to seriously consider making your own soup. Then you can control the amount of salt (and its sodium content) you add.
  • Grenners1968
    Grenners1968 Posts: 4 Member
    I live in the UK, and following on from the previous answers, it would seem that the 160mg per can is correct as opposed to the 1600mg listed on the food table within this plan.
    I only have concerns because the values are red on my daily tracker, I am new to this, and I am actively trying to keep them all in the black.

    Its a minefield, and a very steep learning curve and making my own seems like the best option in most cases.

    Thanks for your time and advice.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Grenners1968 wrote: »
    Amazing answers, thank you all so much.
    I did look on the label, and checked their website, but couldn't find the exact sodium quantity, and it is a 400g can, and I do have it all myself.
    The problem I have is that at 1600mg, that blows my sodium intake sky high.

    Thanks again for all your advice.

    Find the salt quantity on the label (it might say per 100g or per half a can).
    Work out the salt for the whole 400g can and then divide that number by 2.5 to get the sodium number.
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,976 Member
    edited August 2021
    sijomial wrote: »
    Grenners1968 wrote: »
    Amazing answers, thank you all so much.
    I did look on the label, and checked their website, but couldn't find the exact sodium quantity, and it is a 400g can, and I do have it all myself.
    The problem I have is that at 1600mg, that blows my sodium intake sky high.

    Thanks again for all your advice.

    Find the salt quantity on the label (it might say per 100g or per half a can).
    Work out the salt for the whole 400g can and then divide that number by 2.5 to get the sodium number.

    If this is the product (https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/297118188 ), it contains 1600mg of salt per can. So that's 640mg of sodium.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Lietchi wrote: »
    sijomial wrote: »
    Grenners1968 wrote: »
    Amazing answers, thank you all so much.
    I did look on the label, and checked their website, but couldn't find the exact sodium quantity, and it is a 400g can, and I do have it all myself.
    The problem I have is that at 1600mg, that blows my sodium intake sky high.

    Thanks again for all your advice.

    Find the salt quantity on the label (it might say per 100g or per half a can).
    Work out the salt for the whole 400g can and then divide that number by 2.5 to get the sodium number.

    If this is the product (https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/297118188), it contains 1600mg of salt per can. So that's 640mg of sodium.

    The can of Heinz I found in my cupboard is a slightly different recipe - the "no artificial colours or preservatives" variety.
  • Grenners1968
    Grenners1968 Posts: 4 Member
    Thank you Lietchi, that is the right product, and I was confused as the label says 0.1g per 100g, I have 400g meaning 0.4g of salt, I just couldn't get from there to 1600mg of Sodium, but now I have a much better understanding of it.

    Thanks again.
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,976 Member
    It's a very common mistake in the food database, that people enter the amount of salt instead of the amount of sodium, especially in countries like the UK and Belgium (where I live) since the nutritional info on the packet is for salt, not sodium.
    That's my first reflex now when I see very high sodium counts, to check if it's an error :smile:
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    edited August 2021
    Grenners1968 wrote: »
    I only have concerns because the values are red on my daily tracker, I am new to this, and I am actively trying to keep them all in the black.

    truly, unless you have high blood pressure, or other diagnosed medical concern for keeping sodium levels down (or carb or any other nutrient/macro for that matter), it being in the red is fine. aside from calories (which you want to keep as close to the number provided as possible), those other numbers are intended (as a rule of thumb) as a minimum, again, barring any medical concerns.

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