Fighting Back Against Salt

 

Most people realize that they should be keeping an eye on the sodium in their diet but most have no idea how much they are consuming. And it isn't their salt shaker that is the problem. Only about 5% of the sodium that the average American consumes each day comes from salt that they add themselves. So even if you throw your salt shaker away, you are likely still getting far too much. On average, Americans are consuming about 3,400mg of sodium per day, well above the recommended 2,300mg. And all but about 170mg of it is from the food you buy, not the salt you shake on.

The FDA recently issued new guidelines "encouraging" food manufacturers to reduce sodium content in food by 12%. But the "guidelines" are voluntary, so good luck with that.

Most of the sodium you are eating every day comes from either processed foods or restaurant meals. So the less of those you eat, the less sodium you will end up consuming. That said, one reason so much salt is added in the first place is flavor. And finding a balance between sodium and taste can be hard to manage. 

It is also ubiquitous - a fancy word meaning it is found nearly everywhere. Bread, breakfast cereals, condiments like catsup and mustard, prepared salad dressings, any canned food and many frozen ones. Even deserts.

Here are some tips from Consumer Reports On Health Newsletter for reducing the amount of sodium in your diet.

Become More Aware of how much you are consuming and where it comes from. Sodium content is listed on all food labels. Just remember it is per serving, not per package. Find out where the high sodium foods in your diet are and see what you can do to moderate your use of them.

Break the Code of package labeling. "Light in sodium" means the product has at least 50% less sodium that the original item. "Reduced sodium" means it has 25% less. Just be aware that even "light" versions of a food can still contain a lot. Other labels you should know include "low sodium" (140mg or less), "very low sodium" (35mg or less) and "sodium free" (less than 5mg). There is also "no salt added", which means just that, though it may not remotely be a low sodium food.

Train your taste. Changing from an original food to a "light" version is going to be noticeable. The lower sodium version may taste watery or "flat" to you. Give your tastebuds about 3 weeks to adjust and you will not notice the difference. 

Spice Up Your Cooking. You can add a lot of flavor to your food without any salt at all. Garlic, onion, peppers, fresh or dried herbs and citrus all pack a lot of flavor. Acidic ingredients such as vinegar or lemon juice are very good at replacing the taste of salt.

Try a Salt Substitute. Salt substitutes replace sodium with other ingredients like potassium to delivery a salty taste. Nutritional yeast impart a slightly cheesy taste which many people find a good replacement for salt. For more information on salt substitutes and how they fared in taste tests, check here.

You can't depend on the food manufacturers, restaurants or the FDA to do much to help you reduce your sodium intake. So its up to you.