Weekend Edition Hot off the Press #1: Salt to taste

This is the first edition of our weekend health awareness segment.  Every weekend we will be discussing health topics that we have encountered in our food reviews.  This weeks topic…SODIUM!

Sodium is important to have in our diet.  According to Dr. George Obikoya in his article titled The Benefits of Sodium, sodium helps maintain balance of ions in our body fluids and tissues and it stimulates muscle contraction.  (http://www.vitamins-nutrition.org/vitamins/sodium.html)  We of course can’t forget that sodium chloride, better known as salt, is also one of our favorite flavor additives and is one of the main contributors of sodium content.  Sodium can be tricky…too much sodium can lead to kidney disease and high blood pressure, but too little sodium can lead to malnutrition.  As we have been taste testing all of these gluten-free foods we have been paying more attention to the nutrition facts on the packaging.  What you find might surprise you.

So how much sodium should a healthy person really be ingesting to stay healthy?  According to the American Heart Association, you should aim to ingest no more than 1,500mg of sodium per day. (http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4708)  That translates into just a little more than half a teaspoon of salt.  Doesn’t seem like much. 

The other day, I was at the grocery store shopping and decided that I wanted to buy packaged deli meat and cheese to make a sandwich.  What I found surprised me…it actually scared me.  I saw that 1 slice of lunchmeat had 240mg of sodium and then I looked at the cheese slice and saw that it contained 250mg of sodium per slice.  I usually make a sandwich with 2-3 slices of meat and a slice of cheese and calculating the sodium in that is already 730-970mg of sodium depending if I use 2 or 3 slice of lunchmeat.  I’m not even including the sodium content of the bread and the mustard in my calculation and I’m already practically at my sodium intake limit for the day.  Needless to say, I tossed the idea of making a sandwich out the window. 

So what about those packages that say low sodium or reduced sodium?  Are those safe?  Well yes and no.  The important thing to do is to look at the numbers and make sure you understand them.  Pay close attention to the serving size.  Some of the serving sizes are ridiculously low and, if you aren’t aware of it, you may end up eating 5 or 10 servings in a sitting.  Also keep in mind that they base everything on a 2000 calorie diet and the sodium percentages are based on 2300mg, which is higher than the 1500mg that the American Heart Association recommends to aim for.  The American Heart Association website gives the meaning to all of the sodium content terms:

• Sodium-free – less than 5mg per serving
• Very low-sodium – 35mg or less per serving
• Low-sodium – 140mg or less per serving
• Reduced sodium – usual sodium level is reduced by 25%
• Unsalted, no salt added or without added salt – contains only the sodium that is naturally part of the food. 

Bottom line, we all love the taste of salty foods, but make sure you know what you are eating.  It may not seem like you are ingesting large amounts of salt, but you really never know.    

*I am not a nutritionist and this information is not meant to professional health advice.  You should always consult an expert before changing your diet.