Health Tips: The Challenge of Eating Less Salt

Health Tip: The Challenge of Eating Less Salt

Mayo Clinic Rochester, Minn.

Hello! If your doctor or registered dietitian has advised you to cut back on sodium to lower your blood pressure, it's good advice to follow. Even if you haven't been told to reduce sodium, try to moderate the amount you eat each day. Of course, that's easier said than done. Research shows that reducing salt in your diet is notoriously difficult. Salt makes food taste good, and it acts as a preservative. Many doctors believe that the real problem isn't overuse of the saltshaker but rather the hidden salt added to processed foods. More than three-fourths of the salt people consume comes from processed and restaurant foods rather than salt added at the table. The following steps can help you reduce the amount of salt and sodium in your diet: Eat more fresh foods. Fresh meats and produce naturally contain less sodium than do processed foods. Canned vegetables and fruits, as well as smoked or cured meat, such as luncheon meat, bacon, hot dogs sausage and ham contain added salt. Choose lower sodium products. The Nutrition Facts label tells you how much sodium is in each serving. Choose foods that have less than 500 mg of sodium a serving. Look for foods labeled as low salt or low sodium when purchasing processed foods such as soups, broths, and canned vegetables. Limit your use of condiments. Salad dressings, sauces, ketchup, mustard, relish, pickles, olives and other condiments are all high in sodium. Instead, complement your meals with herbs, spices, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper, lemon juice, flavoring extracts, vinegar, table wine (not cooking wine), and unsalted versions of ketchup, mustard and barbeque sauce. Don't add salt when cooking. Cook rice, pasta and hot cereals without adding salt. Remove salt from recipes whenever possible. In some recipes, you can use a no-salt product and a regular product. For example, if your recipe calls for 16 ounces of tomato sauce, try using 8 ounces of no-salt-added sauce and 8 ounces of regular sauce. Limiting sodium intake is challenging — but small changes can bring positive results. As you decrease your salt use gradually, your taste buds will have time to adjust and your preference for sodium will lessen, allowing you to enjoy the taste of the food itself. For more information on ways to lower salt intake or other considerations related to preventing and managing high blood pressure, check out the book, Mayo Clinic 5 Steps to Controlling High Blood Pressure. Yours in good health, The Team from Mayo Clinic Note — As our health tips are shared with thousands of readers, please understand we are not able to respond to individual questions or requests for consultation. The information provided should always supplement the advice of your personal physician, whom you should consult for personal health problems or questions.

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