Health Tips

What is sodium?

Sodium is a mineral that you need to help your body regulate fluid balance.

Too Much Sodium

Sometimes, too much sodium can cause your body to retain too much fluid. Too much sodium can contribute to high blood pressure and hypertension.

Sodium is removed from the body by the kidneys. Sweating also removes sodium.

Too Little Sodium

Too little sodium can cause problems with you body’s regulatory systems.

Pregnant women should be especially careful about cutting back too much on sodium. When you are pregnant, your body needs to retain extra fluid for the development of your baby. Plus, in America and other countries, table salt is fortified with iodine. Iodine deficiency is a major preventable cause of brain damage and mental retardation.

The Recommended Amount of Sodium

The American Heart Association recommends 2400 milligrams of sodium a day. That translates to 2.4 grams.

Labels usually show sodium listed in milligrams (mg). Low Sodium Diets usually refer to sodium in grams (g). You should know 1000 milligrams = 1 gram.

Health Benefits for post-menopausal Women

Limiting sodium with a low sodium diet to less than 3000 milligrams per day, combined with walking 30 minutes a day, four days a week, has shown decreases of 10 to 15 points in the systolic blood pressure reading. Systolic is the higher number in the reading – example 150 over 80, the 150 is the systolic pressure. This reduction can be as much as some medications will achieve.

Sodium Facts

Sources of Sodium

* Table salt
* Added to processed foods
* Over the Counter medications
* Naturally occurring in some foods

Here are some common foods and their average sodium content:

* Apple, raw – 1 mg
* Asparagus, cooked – 1 mg
* Avocado – 4 mg
* Banana – 1 mg
* Bean Sprouts, cooked – 4 mg
* Cantaloupe – 12 mg
* Carrots – 40 mg
* Cashews, unsalted – 15 mg
* Celery, uncooked – 126 mg
* Coffee, instant – 72 mg
* Coffee, Brewed – 1 mg
* Doughnuts – 500 mg
* Endive – 14 mg
* Pizza, cheese – 702 mg
* Popcorn, salted with oil – 1940 mg
* Shrimp – 150 mg
* Strawberries – 1 mg

Common sodium sources in food preparation

* Baking powder
* Baking soda
* Brine
* Monosodium glutamate (MSG)
* Duodenum phosphate
* Sodium benzoate
* Water softeners

Common medications with sodium

* Antacids
* Laxatives
* Cough remedies

Salt Free does not mean sodium free

The label “salt free” means the serving size has less than 5 milligrams of sodium.

Low sodium labels mean the product has less than 140 milligrams per 100 grams (100,000 milligrams).

Unsalted means the same as no salt added. This does not mean there is no sodium; just that none has been added during processing. Many foods contain sodium naturally.

Summary – Should I consider a low sodium diet?

About 1 in 4 Americans have issues with high blood pressure. Sodium intake is one of the controllable ways to help lower your blood pressure. Low sodium diets do help some people control blood pressure. If you are pregnant you should not consider a low sodium, or any diet, without consulting a physician.