Low Sodium Diets
Facts About Low Sodium Diets
Low sodium diets are important if you have high blood pressure or diabetes, or other ailments that may be exacerbated by the intake of too much salt in your daily diet.
Planning what and when you eat, and balancing your meals, are important ways to help manage your overall health. Eating healthy may mean that you need to make some changes in the way you eat now.
Basic guidelines are available on-line and from nutritionists, to help you establish healthy eating habits.
Control the sodium in your diet. The Heart Association recommends 2400 mg or less a day. If you have medical health issues like heart disease or diabetes, lower that to 1500-2000 mg or less a day.
Read food labels and learn about what all the information on them means to you.
Be sure that you include high-fiber foods in your diet, to facilitate the smooth workings of your system. Some foods in this category include vegetables, bran, cereals, pasta and fresh fruit. Fiber helps move food along the digestive tract, in addition to helping to control blood glucose levels and reducing the level of cholesterol in the blood. Your goal should be to include 25 to 35 grams of fiber in your daily diet.
Sodium is found in many foods, and this makes it more difficult to set up and use low sodium diets. Sodium does help maintain a normal fluid balance in the body. But too much sodium can cause the body to retain too much water.
Sticking to low sodium diets can help to control high blood pressure, swelling and edema, which is a build-up of water in the body. Low sodium diets can also help ease breathing difficulties, which can be caused by the heart being weakened by having to pump excess fluid out of the body.
Low sodium diets mean more than just removing the salt shaker from your dinner table – but that will help a lot, since one teaspoon of salt includes about 2300 mg of sodium. Record how much and what foods you eat every day, to track your sodium intake.
There are different categories of foods that are better – or worse – to choose from, when you are trying to maintain a low sodium diet. You should include 2-3 servings a day of protein, 2 or more servings of dairy products, and 5 or more servings of fruits or vegetables. Choose 6 or more small servings a day of breads and grains, and include sparingly sweets and snacks, and fats, oils and condiments.
Use seasonings, herbs and spices in place of salt, including lemon juice, vinegar and herbs and spices with low sodium content.
Low sodium diets help many people live fuller, longer lives. A stable and manageable diet will help your health for years to come.