Tips to Reduce Your Sodium Intake

icandoit
icandoit Posts: 4,163 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Tips to Reduce Your Sodium Intake

Your body needs about 1,500 mg of sodium each day to help maintain water and mineral balances and blood volume. But too much sodium can increase blood pressure. Experts recommend that adults consume less than 2,300 milligrams of sodium daily--that's about 1 teaspoon of salt.

Sodium is a mineral that occurs naturally in foods that you eat every day. Salt and sodium are not the same things--but salt is made from sodium (and chloride). What you might not realize, however, is that"hidden" sodium found in processed foods (in the form of salt) makes up the largest proportion of the sodium that adults consume.

Cutting back on sodium is one action you can take to lower your blood pressure. Here are some sodium-cutting tips you can try today:
Choose low-, no- or reduced-sodium versions of your favorite soups, frozen meals, canned foods, and snacks. Even butter is available without added salt!
Use fresh poultry, fish, and lean meat, rather that canned, smoked, or processed types.
Limit cured and pickled foods such as bacon, ham, pickles, olives, and sauerkraut.
Limit high-salt condiments such as mustard, horseradish, catsup, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, and barbecue sauce.
Season foods with spices, herbs, lemon, lime, vinegar, and salt-free seasoning blends.
Cook rice, pasta, and hot cereals without salt.
If a recipe calls for salt, cut the amount called for in half and taste it before adding more.
If you can't find sodium-free varieties of canned vegetables, rinse the can's contents in a colander under water before cooking to remove excess salt.
Keep in mind that your taste buds are probably accustomed to a strong taste of salt, so limiting your consumption might take a little getting used to, but your health is worth it!

Replies

  • icandoit
    icandoit Posts: 4,163 Member
    Tips to Reduce Your Sodium Intake

    Your body needs about 1,500 mg of sodium each day to help maintain water and mineral balances and blood volume. But too much sodium can increase blood pressure. Experts recommend that adults consume less than 2,300 milligrams of sodium daily--that's about 1 teaspoon of salt.

    Sodium is a mineral that occurs naturally in foods that you eat every day. Salt and sodium are not the same things--but salt is made from sodium (and chloride). What you might not realize, however, is that"hidden" sodium found in processed foods (in the form of salt) makes up the largest proportion of the sodium that adults consume.

    Cutting back on sodium is one action you can take to lower your blood pressure. Here are some sodium-cutting tips you can try today:
    Choose low-, no- or reduced-sodium versions of your favorite soups, frozen meals, canned foods, and snacks. Even butter is available without added salt!
    Use fresh poultry, fish, and lean meat, rather that canned, smoked, or processed types.
    Limit cured and pickled foods such as bacon, ham, pickles, olives, and sauerkraut.
    Limit high-salt condiments such as mustard, horseradish, catsup, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, and barbecue sauce.
    Season foods with spices, herbs, lemon, lime, vinegar, and salt-free seasoning blends.
    Cook rice, pasta, and hot cereals without salt.
    If a recipe calls for salt, cut the amount called for in half and taste it before adding more.
    If you can't find sodium-free varieties of canned vegetables, rinse the can's contents in a colander under water before cooking to remove excess salt.
    Keep in mind that your taste buds are probably accustomed to a strong taste of salt, so limiting your consumption might take a little getting used to, but your health is worth it!
  • suspendedindusk03
    suspendedindusk03 Posts: 53
    icandoit,

    I've been noticing lately the amount of sodium in many things that I eat or that are potential buys. I had a meal the other week all planned out, was partway through cooking it, then I happened to look at the sodium content of everything I was preparing. Man, it was so high.

    Anyway, thanks for this very useful information. I never thought about rinsing the canned vegetables before cooking them to reduce the amount of sodium. I'll definitely be giving that tip a try!

    Hope you've had a great weekend.
  • Razboo
    Razboo Posts: 439 Member
    Some great tips. When I started on this site I switched around the different nutrients that I could track on the food page for a while. I leave one now at Sodium because it is by far the most abused nutrient I consume!

    It's the hardest to control (for me, anyway) and I've had to drop a lot of conveniences from my diet to try and maintain it, but it's still very difficult. Can be doing well all day, then one little unexpected bit of food and bam, I'm over by 1000 or more.

    I don't know how it is even legal that manufacturers are permited to put 50, 100% or more of a day's recomended sodium in a single serving of food. I remember this one frozen dinner that I used to take to work for lunch quite often. It was 115% of the recommended DV sodium. I used to eat so much stuff like that. I'm glad I started dieting and using MFP or someday I probably would be in trouble.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,940 Member
    Razzle-Dazzle,

    Now you can go to the "Printable Report" and at-a-glance get your sodium (and everything else in the system).

    I:love: it.

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