Do you consume too much sodium?
Quick, somebody throw it over your shoulder! I'm superstitious.
Sarah Bruyn Jones, who covers healthcare here at the paper, recently forwarded me a press release from the Centers for Disease Control about sodium consumption in America. According to this report, 9 out of 10 adults consume too much sodium in their daily diets.
This news doesn’t surprise me. U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommend that people consume no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day. If you are 51 or older, African American, or suffer from kidney disease, diabetes or high blood pressure, you are supposed to limit sodium intake to 1,500 milligrams or less per day.
These are the top sources of sodium in American diets:
1. Yeast breads (7.3%)
2. Chicken and chicken mixed dishes (6.8%)
3. Pizza (6.3%)
4. Pasta and pasta dishes (5.1%)
5. Cold cuts (4.5%)
6. Condiments (4.4%)
7. Tortillas, burritos, tacos (4.1%)
8. Sausage, franks, bacon, ribs (4.1%)
9. Regular cheese (3.5%)
10. Grain-based desserts (3.4%)
In other words, all the good stuff. But you’ve probably noticed a lot of products come in low-sodium versions, so that’s a good place to start when lowering your intake. Chicken is a biggie because it is often injected with a salt solution, or brine. So look for chicken that doesn’t have added salt, and low-sodium canned foods.
Another way to reduce sodium is to limit your consumption of convenience products such as boxed macaroni and cheese mix, ready-made mashed potatoes or BBQ, or flavored rice mixes. Choose fresh fruits, veggies and meats instead, or cook your own rice or pasta and lightly season it.
This reminds me that I saw a neat idea on Pinterest recently: Prep as much as you can for a slow cooker meal and freeze the ingredients in zipper-lock bags. That way all you have to do is pull one out of the freezer when you want to put together a slow cooker meal. But slow cookers often cook veggies to death, so try to eat more steamed, grilled or baked veggies, too.
I won’t say much more because I know I probably eat too much sodium, and I also know that most of us know how to reduce our sodium intake – it’s just a matter of consciously making healthier decisions at the grocery store or when we go out to eat. It’s hard! But we can do it.
Have you had to lower your sodium intake? If so, what are some tips you’ve learned along the way?
February 17, 2012 - 6:18 AM
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I’m not convinced that sodium is the great evil that it has been portrayed to be, at least for most people. From what I’ve read, it seems more likely that certain individuals are “salt sensitive”, while most others are largely unaffected by excess salt, at least in the amounts consumed in the typical diet.
If you have high blood pressure, then it makes sense to at least try reducing sodium and see if it helps, but if not then I wouldn’t worry about it. You should monitor your blood pressure regularly in any case, so you’ll know which group you fall into.
Lindsey,
High blood pressure mandated salt avoidance years ago. Fresh veggies, chicken without any additives, fresh fish, etc. all help. Also discovering Mrs. Dash’s salt free spice mixes was a great help. You can get great tasting low salt chicken and beef broth now in cartons in the health food sections of kroger (Pacific brand is great).
Lindsey
Folks need to watch out for frozen veggie! Most all of them are soaked in a brine solution prior to freezing. they have a LOT of salt.
Win
I probably do, but I’ve never had a problem with high blood pressure, so I don’t worry too much about it. I also cook from scratch most of the time instead of using processed foods, so I control the amount of sodium in my dishes.
I know I take in too much.
What exactly is bad about it?
We definitely try to use fresh instead of canned vegetables, etc. But as far as selecting items labelled “low-sodium”, it’s always tricky because you usually have to pick either low sodium OR low fat, there’s not something with both that still has all the flavor!
@Michelle, excessive sodium intake can cause high blood pressure. I do think Mark has a good point that some people may be predisposed to having hypertension while others are not.
If you have been diagnosed with high blood pressure, you should absolutely limit your sodium intake. If not, I think it’s still a good idea to be cognizant of it for preventative reasons. But that goes for all kinds of things!
It’s amazing that canned vegetables are not on that list. For a free example, the next time you’re in the grocery store, stop in the canned vegetable aisle. Like beans, for example. Take note of the sodium in each of them. Or canned soup?
All are in double digits in % of sodium re: daily intake. One can of Cream of Chicken soup is well over 20% of the sodium intake recommended. Look at the beans you buy that are canned. All are double digits. Why they didn’t show up on this target list baffles me.
The problem with sodium is about 1/50th of the severity with increased sugar intake among all Americans.
Just sayin’…