What is sodium?
Sodium is a mineral that is required for maintaining blood pressure, controlling fluid levels in the body and transmitting nerve impulses.
Is sodium the same as salt?
No. Table salt is the most common sodium salt. Others include: sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), sodium benzoate (preservative), sodium cyclamate (sweetener) and sodium nitrate (preservative).
How much sodium is in table salt?
Table salt is about 40% sodium. One teaspoon of salt contains approximately 2000 milligrams (mg) of sodium.
How much sodium do I need?
Unlike other nutrients, there is no recommended daily intake for sodium. There is a minimum amount required but most people get many times this amount. A typical North American diet supplies 4,000 - 10,000 mg of sodium daily. HALF this amount would probably be more than adequate!
Can I get too much sodium?
YES. It is not known whether a high sodium intake causes high blood pressure (hypertension) or not, however, high sodium intakes and high blood pressure usually occur together. If high blood pressure is already present, a high sodium intake may make it worse. High blood pressure is a health risk associated with heart and kidney disease. It is a good idea to have your blood pressure checked regularly by a physician, public health nurse or at a Blood Pressure Clinic. Often, an individual can be unaware of having high blood pressure.
Do I have to avoid all salty foods?
Not necessarily. However, if you want to moderate your sodium intake you will find the table below helpful. Your physician will advise you as to whether or not you need to restrict your sodium intake.
HIGHER SODIUM CHOICES LOWER SODIUM CHOICES
Canned vegetables Fresh or frozen vegetables
Creamed vegetables Uncreamed vegetables
Bouillon cubes Homemade stock/broth
Processed cheeses Block cheeses
Dill Pickles Fresh cucumbers
Sauerkraut Fresh cabbage
Ready-to-eat cereals Home-prepared cereals
Instant cooked cereals Quick cooked cereals
Commercial: Homemade gelatin desserts
Jelly powders
Rice & pasta mixes
Casserole mixes Homemade versions of these foods
Cake & cookie mixes
Instant potato mixes
Gravy, sauce & dip mixes
Smoked, pickled canned or Fresh meat, fish and poultry
seasoned meats, fish and
poultry
Garlic salt, onion salt, Garlic powder, onion powder,
celery salt fresh celery, garlic, onion
Ketchup, soya, steak Lemon, vinegar, herbs
& Worchestershire sauce
Salt shaker Herb shaker
Always taste before salting!
This usually means you will use less salt. Try this test. Place wax paper or foil over a plate and pretend you are salting a meal. Measure the salt. One teaspoon contains about 2000 mg of sodium.
Add less salt when you prepare and cook food!
Try adding less salt to your food, for example, when cooking vegetables, pastas, soups and stews.
Reduce the salt in recipes!
Your taste for salt is a learned taste that can be unlearned. Gradually reduce the salt in recipes so your taste for salt can adjust more easily. The salt in most recipes can be halved with no effect on the product.
Experiment with other Flavourings!
Lemon and vinegar are natural flavour enhancers that are low in sodium. Replace the salt shaker with an herb shaker. (Combine one tablespoon each: dried basil, parsley, marjoram, thyme, sage, onion and/or garlic powder.)
Plan ahead to reduce your reliance on high sodium convenience foods!
The more 'instant' or 'processed' a food, the more likely it is to be high in sodium. The same food made from scratch has less sodium added and tends to be less expensive.
Be aware of the sodium content of the food you eat!
Read the list of ingredients on labels for other sodium-containing compounds in addition to salt such as: monosodium glutamate (MSG), sodium benzoate, sodium nitrate and sodium bicarbonate.
Should pregnant women cut down on salt?
Sodium used to be restricted in pregnancy because it was thought this would help reduce fluid retention. However, it is now realized that a certain amount of fluid retention is part of having a normal pregnancy and a healthy baby. Sodium is necessary to ‘balance’ the extra fluid in the pregnant woman’s body. Therefore, sodium restriction is NOT recommended in pregnancy. If you think you use a lot of salt, it would be a good idea to discuss this with your physician.
Choose your food wisely!
The following table shows some interesting differences in the sodium content of some foods. Try to get in the habit of considering the sodium content of the meal as a whole. Ask yourself if there is a lower-sodium alternative. For example, if you use canned instead of fresh tomatoes in a recipe, you could add less salt than called for by the recipe. Fresh or frozen corn would be a lower-sodium alternative to canned or creamed corn and would thus be a better accompaniment to a high-sodium meat such as ham.
How sodium increases with processing
(numbers are for milligrams of sodium in food)
Apple- 2 mg Applesauce Apple Pie
1 cup- 6 mg 1/8 frozen- 208 mg
Bread Pound Cake English Muffin
1 slice, white 1 slice 393 mg
114 mg 171 mg
Butter Butter Margarine
1 tbsp., unsalted 1 tbsp., salted 1 tbsp.
2 mg 116 mg 140 mg
Chicken Chicken Pie Chicken Dinner
½ breast frozen fast food
69 mg 907 mg 2,243 mg
Corn Canned Corn Corn Flakes
1 1 cup 1 cup
194 256
Cucumber Cucumber Dill Pickle
7 slices with salad dressing 928
2 234
Lemon Soy Sauce Salt
1 1 tbsp. 1 tbsp.
1,029 1,938
Milk Dry Milk Cottage Cheese
1 cup ½ cup 4 oz.
122 322 475
Pork Bacon Ham
3 oz. 4 slices 3 oz.
59 548 1,114
Potato Potato Chips Instant Mashed
5 10 1 cup
200 485
Steak Jumbo Burger Meat Loaf
3 oz. fast food frozen dinner
55 990 1,304
Tomato Tomato Soup Tomato Sauce
14 1 cup 1 cup
932 1,498
Water, tap Club Soda Antacid
8 oz., 8 oz. in water
12 39 564
YES! The sodium content of the water supply varies from one area to another. Some bottled water have sodium compounds added as well.
LOW SODIUM MEDIUM SODIUM HIGH SODIUM
100 mg or less per litre 101-300 mg per litre 301 mg or more per litre
Canaqua Esprit Appolinaris
Mont Blanc Ramlosa Crystal Springs
Perrier Club Sodas: Carignan
Saratoga Canada Dry Eau de Vichy
Spa Monopole Grand Prix Radenska
White Mountain Pure Spring S. Pelligrino
Dominion No-Name Sunspun
Soda Loblaws
Domino Soda Beckers
Yukon Club Soda Schweppes
What about softened water ?
Hard water contains a lot of calcium and magnesium. A water softener replaces these minerals with sodium. Softened water therefore contains more sodium. If you have a softened water supply in your home, the taps from which you take your drinking water should not be hooked up to the softener.
Reproduced by permission of the Nutrition Division, City of York Health Unit.
