there is so much sodium in everything

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johnashton904108
johnashton904108 Posts: 1
in Getting Started
Sodium is everywhere, in my nonfat milk 135mg and sugar 12g, what's up with that? How much sodium is considered ok?

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  • nicolejo143
    nicolejo143 Posts: 214 Member
    edited January 2015
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    MFP gives you a nutritional goal for sodium. I try not* to go too much over that.
  • TheVirgoddess
    TheVirgoddess Posts: 4,535 Member
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    johnashton904108 wrote: »
    Sodium is everywhere, in my nonfat milk 135mg and sugar 12g, what's up with that? How much sodium is considered ok?

    You do know that sodium is naturally occurring, right?

    MFP gives you 2300mg of sodium a day.

    In my opinion, neither of the things you listed are high in sodium.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,742 Member
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    I have no idea if this applies to you at all, OP. But I notice the only time I go over on sodium (from the MFP set goal) is when I eat a lot of restaurant food and prepared foods like sauces, soups, and boxed meal mixes or frozen meals. Therefore I just try to limit that stuff a bit. For example -- cook more from scratch and if I eat a restaurant dinner or lunch (which I do often), then I eat my other meals at home that day. Chinese takeout for example, is typically my entire day's worth of sodium in one shot.

    My husband really has to monitor and limit sodium because of a tendency toward high blood pressure. For most people, though it's not a big problem if you go over occasionally. One thing a lot of MFP users hate about sodium is that it can cause you to retain water, and that can slow (or appear to slow) meeting your weight loss goals.
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 17,959 Member
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    You need a certain amount of sodium, or you die. Generally, people don't need to be too worried about their sodium unless they have a pre-existing issue. You will never eradicate all sodium, and nor should you!
  • sharonhouse81
    sharonhouse81 Posts: 20 Member
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    the best way to get around the sodium issue is to not eat anything that comes out of a package. fresh is best. and even some fresh stuff has salts.... I've been finding that I have been going over my sugar limit without even eating candy.... just yogurt and the fruits I have during the day provide me with enough sugar. Sodas also have a lot of sodium.
  • mike_ny
    mike_ny Posts: 351 Member
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    Some people are sensitive to sodium (we're talking sodium chloride as in table salt), but for most people the only issues are water retention and making sure you balance it out with potassium to maintain your electrolyte levels.
  • HillSlug98239
    HillSlug98239 Posts: 28 Member
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    The food guidelines are changing to reflect the difference between naturally occurring sugars and added sugars. Milk has "sugar" in it; in reality, that's lactase, a naturally occurring sugar. That's a whole lot different that the added sugar in chocolate milk or flavored & sweetened soy & almond milks.

    Sodium is in almost everything, but as others have said your primary concern should be in processed foods, not naturally-occuring sodium. It's one of reasons I make and can (in a pressure-canner) soup; my soups taste as salty as commerically-prepared soups, but they contain no more than half the sodium.

    Two of my favorite foods - bread and cheese - are high in sodium. I'm a scratch baker, and I've never found a way to make tasty low-sodium bread. And the low-sodium cheeses are so processed they're like fake food in my mind. I'd rather eat less of something I love than eat my fill of something less than ideal.

    But - good for you for reading labels and educating yourself about what you're eating. Just remember that minimally-processed is almost always best, and that labels that claim to be low-fat, low-sodium, low-carb, etc., are not always what they're cracked up to be. And geez, if you can't enjoy your food, what's the point of living? :(
  • golfbrew_matt
    golfbrew_matt Posts: 240 Member
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    I also find that I go over my sodium every day. I tend to concentrate only on total calories and I tend to eat too many packaged foods (breakfast sandwiches, etc.) and eat lower calorie restaurant food a couple times a week. It hasn't seemed to keep me from losing weight but it is something that I'd like to clean up a little in the future. Does anyone have a decent sample diary of about 1500 calories a day that remains below 2300 mg of sodium? Just looking for some examples of foods I could substitute to lower sodium intake. In the past, I haven't included no-calorie drinks (diet pop) in my food log and sometimes I would skip low calorie condiments (sriracha sauce) and now that I'm adding those, my sodium is even higher!
  • doomspark
    doomspark Posts: 228 Member
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    I watch my sodium intake because eating too much plays merry hell with my blood-pressure. Processed foods are the very devil. There are tons of spices that add flavour without adding gobs of sodium.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
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    I am low sodium. I allow less than 2000 mcg daily. Raw veggies, raw fruits, lettuce, etc.. are all low natural sodium.

    It is processed things like Milk, Cheese, Processed Foods (stay away from these), salad dressings, condiments (ketchup, bbq sauce, mayo) all are terrible.

    I do allow them in my diet. I have to have my salad dressing, my creamer with my coffee and ketchup! I have eliminated all extra table salt.

    I drink 1/2 gallon water a day. I works and helps me beat the horrible sodium issues! I hate being bloated, my hands and feet swelling and hurting... I can gain 2 - 3 lbs easy on the scale.

    Drink more water and only allow about 1900 to 2000 mcg if possible a day and you will see a huge difference! Some days it is almost impossible to stay under 2300 but it is doable -

  • rdonald57
    rdonald57 Posts: 74 Member
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    okay it is not much of a problem, just drink more water than usual, bye bye sodium, excess sodium will hit the toilet. I have 2 20 ounce water bottles that say Fred and can fit my pocket and drink 80 ounces a day. Also the iodine in table salt is good for you, stops rickets so use some or take an iodine tablet
    hey add me as friend
  • rdonald57
    rdonald57 Posts: 74 Member
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    or eat green peas, I hear they are an excellent source of iodine
  • rdonald57
    rdonald57 Posts: 74 Member
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    I am sure that salt is good for you as recent European studies have shown that low salt has added to mortality rates or shortened mortality rates
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    edited January 2015
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    Sodium added to foods is the problem, not sodium naturally occurring in foods.
    Packaged foods have both sodium and sugar added (as well as preservatives). Preparing your own meals from fresh ingredients will eliminate quite a bit of this if you are concerned about these amounts. Another thing to be aware of is if you go out to eat there is also a lot of sodium and sugar put into the food that restaurants serve.
    I was very surprised to find out that frozen, boneless, skinless chicken breasts have a lot of added sodium. Now I buy only fresh and never get the frozen ones even though they are less expensive. Reading labels is second nature to me now, and most of the time, it goes right back on the shelf.
  • deleteme2015
    deleteme2015 Posts: 23
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    Which is why I never add salt to anything I cook, with grits being an occasional exception. There are tons of other seasonings you can use to flavor your food.
  • jskaggs1971
    jskaggs1971 Posts: 371 Member
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    2300 mg a day is fairly easy to stay under until you start eating a lot of processed foods or go out to dinner. For example, if you go to Chilis and order the boneless Buffalo chicken salad, you get over 1000 kcal and a whopping 3730 mg of sodium.

    Frozen and canned food tends to have the most sodium.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    johnashton904108 wrote: »
    Sodium is everywhere, in my nonfat milk 135mg and sugar 12g, what's up with that? How much sodium is considered ok?

    125mg of sodium isn't a lot of sodium...and the sugar in the milk is naturally occurring lactose. 2300 mg per day is the recommended high end...if you're not eating a ton of processed foods and/or eating out a lot, it's pretty easy to stay under that number.

    Also, you can get too little sodium as well...especially if you're working out and sweating, etc...it is an essential electrolyte. Also, you sodium:potassium ratio is important....more important than you actual intake of sodium.
  • ItsMe0909
    ItsMe0909 Posts: 30
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    With all the things that some one can spend a lot of money for; I'm surprised there isnt pre-measured packets of salt (sodium). Measured down to the gnat's butt.

    I just started monitoring my food in early December. The calories werent so much a problem to achieve a goal as the damned salt. Actually; when I first started - I was only looking at my cals.

    I've really worked hard to keep with the 1200 cals. I also am almost to a goal of 3500 cals exercise burned per week, which I do not eat back currently. I've been slowly working towards a 2 pounds per week goal. 1 pound loss via eaten cals and 1 pound loss via exercise cals. I have not found this difficult; but it has been a 7 day commitment.
    I am not there yet. Feb.!!

    I (started to) use iOS 8 to log my activities. It was the little bit of inspiration to prioritize my day. Every 'diet' I've ever started began on a Monday. So, Monday, 12/08, I jumped on the treadmill @ 11.5% grade in granny gear. 3.0 mph . I walked for 20 minutes. 208 cals, I think. It as do-able, but I was winded. About Wed that week, I decided to start logging my cals using MFP. My walk on the treadmill when I started limiting cals was tough. I felt nauseous one or two days. I think this was because I was over my max BPM in heart rate. I would take a shower right after this and it was tough to keep my hands over my head while I washed my hair. I felt weak washing my hair. ??!!

    I bought a HRM. Two of them actually. Results surprised me; but am making forward progress.

    In Dec, my plan was to keep with 1200 (food) cals. I also was adding just +10 cals a day to my 7 day workout. I planned for some treats and holiday meals. I was generally on track. To be clear, every day I add 10 cals to my goal before I stop my exercise.

    Thanks to some MFP awareness; I've eliminated a fair amount of sodium from breakfast and lunch. Dinner, for two, usually involves some sort of boxed meal (using what we have). I'm trying to weed out the high sodium items in the pantry. But just one really makes a difference.

    Getting to my point; I would really like to see a pre-measured option for sodium. My scale wont go that low (I think).
  • ForecasterJason
    ForecasterJason Posts: 2,577 Member
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    I get over 2000 calories a day and generally consume under 2300 mg of sodium. As others have mentioned, limiting your intake of pre packaged foods helps. On a given day, I don't normally eat more than a couple pre packaged foods that are loaded with sodium. The rest of my diet is mostly filled with whole grains, dairy, fruits, nuts, and lean meats (prepared at home).
  • eweadock
    eweadock Posts: 31 Member
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    My mom has congestive heart failure and sodium can be deadly to her. It is not difficult to cook for her in a low-sodium manner, but the posts that indicate prepared foods, restaurant dishes, etc. are all high in sodium are right on. Salt can be deadly for mom. That doesn't mean she can't have some nachos once a week, but she can't have them 3 days in a row. So, read labels, cook your own food and don't add salt. You usually get enough sodium in your diet with just normal eating. If you don't pay attention, it is really easy to get too much. That's the beauty of MFP, you can track things so you know how to adjust your behavior and choices.

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