Low Sodium Diet

American diet contains great amounts of sodium. However reducing sodium does not necessarily mean reducing the taste in food. Spices, fresh herbs, and other goods which are considered healthy and pizzazz to foods deleting the salt may be a choice. Benefits such as the reduction of fluid retention and the improvement of heart function and blood pressure may be a result of the sodium free diet.

Few people think that sodium is not important in a person’s diet.

Sodium is very, very important, in fact crucial, for certain psychological as well as metabolic processes in the body. On the other hand, if sodium levels in the body become too high, they may put you at risk for hypertension or high blood pressure most especially if the person involved is a bit older. The needed and recommended amounts of sodium in the body may vary depending on ethnicity, age, and other psychological needs.

How to Slow Down on Sodium Intake

Many people have the tendency to put salt in their foods in order to add taste. This is one of the biggest sources of sodium in a person’s diet. Thus, it will be helpful of this is minimized. An ordinary table salt contains about 40% of sodium. If you know that you are at high risk of acquiring high blood pressure, fast food must be avoided while prepared foods such as nuts, chips, crackers, and soups must be eaten in spare amounts because they tend to be very high in sodium. An example of a low sodium diet would be composed of a piece of toast with jelly, an orange, coffee, and a cup of cereal with skim milk. A lunch which contains a low amount of sodium would contain wheat toast with lettuce, an unsalted tuna salad, a piece of peach, unsalted crackers, and skim milk.

Diet for All

If you have enough reason to believe that you are at risk of having hypertension or high blood pressure, such as having family history of the illness or known risk factors like an African American, you should talk to your physician to outline a diet plan that accommodates you needs. However, if you simply want to improve your health by going on a low sodium diet or applying a low sodium recipe, the core meaning is implied by the name itself. It simply avoids salty foods while ensuring nice tasting foods.

Submitted on January 16, 2014