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March 4th, 2010
04:11 PM ET
How can I reduce salt in my diet?As a feature of CNNhealth.com, our team of expert doctors will answer readers' questions. Here's a question for Dr. Gupta. From Jack, who lives in New Jersey My doc says I need to cut back my sodium. What is the best way? Answer: I can tell you, Jack, first of all this may be one of the most important questions we answer. When it comes to sodium, we simply eat too much. The average American consumes about 4,000mg per day of salt in his or her diet a day, but as an adult, we really need about half that – 2,300mg per day. Simply cutting back on sodium could potentially save about 150,000 lives a year according to the American Medical Association. Of course, that's easier said than done. Especially because salt is hidden in almost everything we eat. Frozen foods are one of biggest culprits. Even the "healthy" frozen dinners can contain as much sodium as a person needs in an entire day. A big reason manufacturers pump their products with extra salt is that it's a good preservative – makes the shelf life longer. Canned foods, cereal and pastries are also some of the biggest culprits of '”hidden” high sodium levels. That is why reading the ingredient label is so crucial when you're shopping at the grocery store. A good rule of thumb when reading labels is try to find foods that that have fewer than 5 ingredients. That's really going to help you make healthy food choices overall. Specific to sodium, pay attention to not only how many grams are listed on the label, but also the serving size. One can of soup lists a sodium content of 500mg, but if you examine the label a little further, the can of soup could contain three servings. That means eating one can of soup can almost tap out the amount of sodium you should have for the entire day. One thing that we do in our house is never leave crackers or cookies just sitting out in a big box. We portion high-sodium and snack foods out which is really important because it helps limit the mindless eating that's so easy to do. Also, I've found a lot of people cook with salt or add it to prepared food for extra flavor simply out of habit. If that sounds like you, Jack, one tip is to remove the salt shaker from your table – just get it out of there altogether. You'll most likely find you don't even miss it. You can also take a trip to the spice isle next time you're at the grocery store. There are several salt substitutes and other salt-free seasonings that will add flavor to your food, without increasing your sodium intake. Incorporating just a few of these small changes into your daily diet can dramatically change your sodium intake. And Jack, I'm willing to bet you hardly notice any change in taste. Editor's Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.
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Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love. Recent Comments
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Mr. Reiner is a Loser, a Big Fat Loser who wants to control the liberal press.
I love steak and salt same regularly.
Salt is important in our diet.
Henry Ketchuun discusses this in his book.
We need Salt in our diet!
I love my Cheeseburger with plenty of SALT.
Harry Shapiro loved salt on his Cheeseburger.
Salt is as important to Water fro your survival.
Salt is essential to Life.
Salt added to Steroids is a Nuclear reaction.
Salt is featured in all our Kosher Products.
Salt on my Steak brings out the Taste.
Salt is a key element of my diet.
Sodium and Salt are very important to a healthy diet.
I love salt on my French Fryed potaoes.
We love are salt tablets after running!
I am a Dildo!
I am a Pussy!
Drug use is not a laughing matter.
Salt is good for the soul!
Salt on French Fries is Jewish Soul food!
Jewish Soul food is plenty of Salt on a Fried Blintz sandwich.
It is hard to seperate the crooks from the Good Guys. Salt on my plate of pasta helps plenty.
Salt intake during sports gives one the EDGE required to compete.
Salt is our main product.
We are proud of our product mix!
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