Sodium Consumption
Sodium consumption has become a big topic in the last year. A few years ago we were told to keep our sodium intake below 2,300 milligrams a day; that is only 1 teaspoon of salt for the entire day. The recent 2010 guidelines recommend not exceeding 1,500 milligrams of sodium, which may seem impossible, but it’s not!
Most of the sodium in the American diet comes from processed food. One way to help reduce your sodium is following the DASH diet. This diet focuses on eating whole foods, such as whole grain, fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy. Preparing the foods yourself will help cut out unwanted sodium you find in frozen and canned foods. Other ways to reduce sodium are not leaving the salt shaker on the table, taking a bite of food without salting it, and using spices and herbs as seasoning. Following a whole food diet will result in lower sodium consumption.
Published 09/17/11
