Sodium and Salt – How Much is Too Much?

by Shereen Jegtvig

Sodium is a dietary mineral that in the right amount is essential for your health.  It’s called an electrolyte mineral, which along with potassium and chloride, helps to keep the fluids balanced in your body.  Sodium also aids in muscle contractions and is necessary for nerve impulses.  Too little sodium could result in low blood pressure and eating too much sodium may contribute to high blood pressure, which is a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases.

Most likely, you already get enough sodium from the foods in your diet, and actually it’s very likely that you get too much sodium.  Experts calculate that healthy people should keep to no more than 2400 milligrams sodium every day, and people with high blood pressure should drop their sodium intake to less than 1500 milligrams.  Sodium is naturally found in salt, which is half sodium and half chloride, milk, cheese, beets and celery and some tap water.

These natural sources of sodium only contribute about one-quarter of your daily sodium intake.  The rest comes from processed foods like canned foods, boxed dinner mixes, frozen dinners and most of the snacks you’ll find in the grocery store.  Foods high in sodium don’t have to taste salty.  It’s found in many of the preservatives and additives used to enhance the flavor and shelf-life of products.  You’ll also find lots of sodium in the meals you order in restaurants and cafeterias.

If your diet is high in fresh fruits and vegetables and you stay away from highly processed foods, you probably are getting the right amount of sodium.  If you eat a lot of processed foods, dine frequently in restaurants or overdo the salty snacks, you may need to cut back.  So how tough will that be?

To be honest, avoiding sodium when you eat a lot of processed foods isn’t easy, but you can find low-sodium versions of many foods.  You can also switch from table salt to a salt substitute that contains potassium.  For cooking, you can play around with different herbs and spices that add flavor and no additional sodium.

The US FDA has set these guidelines for sodium claims on food labels:
Sodium-free: less than 5 mg per serving.
Very low sodium: 35 mg or less per serving.
Low-sodium: 140 mg or less per serving.
Light in sodium: at least 50 percent less sodium per serving than that brand’s regular product.
Reduced or less sodium: at least 25 percent less per serving than that brand’s regular product.

If you want to compare the sodium content of your favorite foods right now, you can use the FoodEssentials tool.  Take a look at canned tomatoes for example.

There’s a big difference in sodium content for the different brands of tomatoes.  And remember that those tomatoes are only going to be one component of your dish – so you can see the sodium can add up quickly.

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