Horrible Sodium Levels!!

PageSalyers
PageSalyers Posts: 51 Member
edited October 2 in Food and Nutrition
Hi!
I am really STRUGGLING to keep my sodium intake down. I made homemade cabbage soup and even bought low so broth... turns out its over 700 mg per serving!
Everyday I am at 3,500- 4,500. I dont eat a TON of processed food either so I dont understand.
Any tips?
Also, does drinking a lot of water help flush the sodium out?

Replies

  • inlander
    inlander Posts: 339 Member
    STORY OF MY LIFE. It's been recommended to me to drink extra water. Which I don't. But YOU should. ;)
  • BethanyMasters
    BethanyMasters Posts: 519 Member
    I go over my sodium quite often and quite a bit. But in my experience as long as you drink a ton of water it really doesn't matter.

    I have a lot of sodium but I also drink over a gallon of water a day. The only time I have issues with water weight is during my time of the month.
  • Pepper2185
    Pepper2185 Posts: 994 Member
    Cut out the deli meat. Sodium overload :)
  • Jorra
    Jorra Posts: 3,338 Member
    Based on a few days in your diary, I can see your biggest offenders are breads and meats. Bread naturally has sodium, but it's also used as a filler in heavily processed bread. There is low sodium bread out there if you search, I've heard "Ezekiel 4:9" bread has a good option. Deli meat is hugely processed and LOADED with sodium. Any meat that's already pre-made into an unnatural shape is probably loaded. I tend to buy fresh, unfrozen chicken breasts or ground meat.
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    It looks like the biggest culprits are deli meats and condiments like barbecue sauce. It also looks like you are eating more processed foods and fast food than you should. If you do have to eat processed foods make sure you look at the nutrition labels and find ones that are lower in sodium. You can also try making your own pasta sauces and things so you can control the amount of sodium you consume. Or, a better idea is to reduce the amount of sauce you use on meats and vegetables so you can begin to eat those foods plain.
  • pph79
    pph79 Posts: 78
    I have this problem as well usually. Water is suppose to help and i try to drink it as much as possible. I think alot of it just has to do with foods today being full of preservatives and/or salt to add to the "flavor." I'm a vegetarian and i know alot of veggie burgers and whatnot are usually high in sodium.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,422 Member
    Deli foods are processed foods. If you want meat, cook your own turkey or beef or chicken.

    Also, do you buy processed grains? Like crackers or cereal or bread? Check the labels.

    Also, frozen meat is often treated with brine (salt water) during the process. Again, anything with a label on it can be checked.
  • Seraph1120
    Seraph1120 Posts: 194 Member
    Cut out the deli meat. Sodium overload :)

    Oh boy...this is where most of my sodium comes in. Unfortunately, with being on a very tight budget, it's much easier to buy a tub of lunch meat and stretch it over two weeks for my lunches. I'd love to have a healthier lunch, but it gets pretty costly. :frown:
  • BigBeauti23
    BigBeauti23 Posts: 18 Member
    As someone stated before drink more water... Prepackaged foods and tv dinners and things are cheap but the sodium levels in all of them are terrible.
  • CaptainMFP
    CaptainMFP Posts: 440 Member
    Even if you drink a lot of water excessive sodium can contribute directly to high BP independent of your weight and fitness so it is worth taking seriously for your long-term health. (A full explanation of sodium, water, and the kidneys is beyond the scope of this post, but I'm an anatomy & physiology instructor and am happy to share this with folks separately...most info I see circulating in MFP about sodium, water, and health is inaccurate.)

    Keeping sodium low takes work to get used to but in the end is not unworkable. You are welcome to browse my diary for ideas...I keep my average sodium intake to about 1700 mg with a total calorie intake of about 2200. (Basically, I'm not keeping sodium low by not eating much...I'm actually keeping it low.)

    Simple tips, though.
    (1) Don't cook with it unless necessary. Very few recipes (excluding baking here) have to have salt in them. I almost never add salt when I cook and the flavor of my food has yet to suffer for it.
    (2) Find every low-sodium alternative you can. This can be choosing low sodium/no salt added options for packaged foods (like beans and peanut butter) but it can also mean switching to simple alternatives. Greek yogurt is generally lower in sodium than conventional. Swiss cheese has half the sodium than virtually every other cheese (and has more protein, less fat, and fewer cals per ounce, too!) Raw nuts are awesome!

    For broth, see if you can track down Pacific Foods organic free-range low sodium chicken broth. I think it tastes better than salty broth and has only 70 mg of sodium per CUP!
  • hkrosez
    hkrosez Posts: 53
    sodium is needed for your liver to fuction, and a normal amount (daily value) is fine along with 8 cups of water. If you eat more sodium, you need to drink more water. Looks like about 12 cups or more with your intake.


    I would also search for a 'sprouted grain' bread which is more natural and not as processed. It is delicious and can be found at more bread stores.

    Also, you can get better deli meat by not buying the 'tub' but ordering it at your deli dude. Just tell him you want a pound of turkey or w/e.

    Hope this helps.
  • dmpizza
    dmpizza Posts: 3,321 Member
    I have to limit my sodium as well. In fact that is my concern far more than any weight issues.
    What I have found is that Frosted MiniWheats have ZERO sodium.
    My typical breakfast is some of the cereal with a small amount of low sodium peanut butter and literally a small splash of skim milk.
    My lunch is just a small container of the same cereal.
    This leaves me some spare room at dinner. Usually I just eat less dinner than I would have to not go over the limit.
  • jkuhn71
    jkuhn71 Posts: 199
    If you don't want to give up deli meat, Boar's Head has a "NO SALT ADDED" turkey breast and roast beef. They also have "lower sodium" varieties, but the NO SALT ADDED options are MUCH better! The turkey has 55mg of sodium in 2 oz and the roast beef has 40mg in 2 oz. Also - their NO SALT ADDED natural swiss cheese has 10mg of sodium per oz!

    My hubby and I watch our sodium intake religiously (hubby had high BP issues in the past). We buy no salt added/lower sodium options whenever we can and always look at packaging to find our best options. It takes a little extra time when you're shopping to compare things, but gets quicker over time as you learn what the best options are! Hope that helps!!!
  • Semperfione
    Semperfione Posts: 109
    Totally agree, same boat here...I do buy at Costco and turkey seems to be the best.
  • katyk00
    katyk00 Posts: 67 Member
    I recently discovered in a article/thread on MFP that a diet high in potassium actually does a better job of counter-acting the effects of a high sodium diet. If you search the threads you'll find them. After reading it, I started tracking potassium and noticed certain foods with high sodium also had the same amount of potassium.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    Below is a link to a good article from the Mayo Clinic on sodium. Why we need it, how much we need, and why it's dangerous to consume too much, along with tips on how to cut it from your diet.

    http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sodium/NU00284
  • mattellis2
    mattellis2 Posts: 152
    tag
  • bevskiwolf
    bevskiwolf Posts: 296 Member
    Roast an entire chicken. Tons of meat for the whole week. Cheap and delicious! Toss in big onion cubed in a roasting pan at 350 for about an hour and a half. Take off the lid and roast another half hour.

    Last time I checked chicken was like $1.00 something a POUND!

    Good luck! xoox
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    Roast an entire chicken. Tons of meat for the whole week. Cheap and delicious! Toss in big onion cubed in a roasting pan at 350 for about an hour and a half. Take off the lid and roast another half hour.

    Last time I checked chicken was like $1.00 something a POUND!

    Good luck! xoox

    Wow! I don't know where you live but I want to shop there. Unless it's on sale, chicken is usually well over $3 a lb where I live. Even on sale it's rarely below $2. If you want organic it's over $6 a lb.
  • NeuroticVirgo
    NeuroticVirgo Posts: 3,671 Member
    It just takes time. A year ago my sodium levels were around 5000-6000 a day (and that's AFTER starting MFP and watching calories). Now they stay steady between 1500-3000 (leans towards the 3000 if I eat out, subway etc).

    As for broths, I ordered this stuff from Amazon, and it is a life saver for anything that needs beef or chicken broth that I want to cut the sodium on. Herb-ox is the easiest brand to find, and they make both Chicken and Beef. But I can still only find it online.

    Food-001-1.jpg
  • Jorra
    Jorra Posts: 3,338 Member
    I recently discovered in a article/thread on MFP that a diet high in potassium actually does a better job of counter-acting the effects of a high sodium diet. If you search the threads you'll find them. After reading it, I started tracking potassium and noticed certain foods with high sodium also had the same amount of potassium.

    I was going to mention this. Potassium counters the effects of high sodium because it works with sodium in the body. When you don't have enough potassium, the bad effects get worse. Sodium and potassium drive countless metabolic reactions within the body, and you need both to work.

    Also remember that not all labels have potassium counts, so you will be getting a little more than MFP says you are.
  • TubbsMcGee
    TubbsMcGee Posts: 1,058 Member
    I pay attention more to my sodium levels than my calorie intake.
    By manually setting your sodium intake lower, that should help further motivate you to check the food labels BEFORE consuming the food.
    I don't like to go over the Canadian Food Guide's recommendation of 1500mg a day.

    Avoid processed meats (deli cuts, bacon, etc.), go light on the cheese, choose your breads and pastas wisely.

    Soups are huge offenders, too. No need to snack on crackers with it!

    Also, hot sauces have tonnes of sodium in them. This was incredibly hard for me to wean off of, as I used to drown everything in habenero sauce.

    My salt shaker is also collecting dust...I can't remember the last time I added salt to any of my foods.

    When you have those crazy days when you go above 2000mg + of sodium a day, better be sure to guzzle oodles of water.
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