Any Strategies for Lowering Sodium?
I'm having a really tough time finding ways to keep my sodium intake under the 2,400 that everything seems to recommend. It's been a byproduct of trying to lose weight that I've noticed how high my daily intake actually is.
I eat a pretty normal diet, it just seems like EVERYthing has sodium in it. High Blood Pressure runs in my family, so I have to be concerned about it. Any ideas?
You're right to be concerned about sodium given your family history of high blood pressure. You mentioned that you eat a pretty normal diet--but do you eat a lot of canned foods? Sodium can be really high in a lot of the canned foods we eat, so you may want to consider looking for no salt added on the labels, or better yet go with fresh or frozen.
The tricky thing about sodium is that when it's in canned foods, we really don't taste it. But it's still there and can add up. I never add salt to any recipe while cooking--instead I add a bit at the table, and that way I get the taste with far less actual sodium in my food.
I like can soups and omg do they really have a lot of salt. I'm find more reduced sodium versions and I'm planning this week to go to ALL no salt added canned veg. which is pretty easy to find. Switching to iodized sea salt in a grinder instead of the run of the mil shakers is one more thing you could try. Goiters- swelling of thyroids is still possible if you don't get enough iodine. That's why I add that line there. I've never tried the NO SALT - salt replacement so I can't give my take on it. Just note it.
Best wishes!
I had to cut out as *much* salt intake as possible due to high blood pressure. A large part of my wanting to lose 45 lbs (and ultimately getting on CC) was to bring my pressure down with less meds (I was not even getting the pressure under control with higher dosages of meds and the side effects were onerous, etc.) Serious sodium intake reduction has really helped lower my pressure. I'm now under 1000mg a day typically, and manage to get down to 500mg or less on some days, when I don't eat hard cheeses.
When I started using CC, and really reading labels, the sodium "sticker shock" was a rude awakening. Especially with the sneaky sample sizes that manufacturers foist on us, "1/8th of a can" values when someone would typical eat 1/2 a can.
As a lot of people have said it takes about a month or so to gradually get your sense of taste back to where you don't miss the salt so much. After that, eating run of the mill produced items or in a restaurant can be like drinking sea water, but I'd rather not have the sodium.
I cut out *all* salt as much as possible, none added with the shaker, but more importantly, as everyone else said, you've got to read, read, and READ those labels.
I buy dried beans now and rehydrate and cook them myself, no more canned. I'm mostly off of processed foods, or I buy the low or no-sodium versions. What others have said is right, there's salt added in just about everything, similar to HFCS (high fructose corn syrup), although that's another whole topic.
One of the last big "hidden" sodium items for me was bread. Since low-sodium real bread (not mass-produced, which I hate with a passion anyway) is almost impossible to find here, I got a bread machine and started making my own. Onion powder gives a similar "tang" to the salt that I don't add to the dough.
Good luck with your sodium reduction (and weight reduction).
I've managed to lose 35 lbs in 5.5 months, 20 in the 3 months I've been on CC. I haven't weighed this little in 22 years.
