High Blood Pressure: Eating Foods Low in Salt: Brief Version

If you have high blood pressure, cutting down on salt can help lower it. Sodium is the part of salt that causes the problems. You should have no more than 2300 milligrams of sodium a day. One teaspoon of salt has about 2300 milligrams of sodium.

Our taste for salt is mainly a habit. When you use less salt, your taste starts to change. After a while, food tastes better without salt than it did with it.

You can use less salt.

There are two main ways to use less salt:

• Do not add salt to your foods.
• Choose foods that have less salt. Read the labels on canned and prepared foods.

If you need to eat very little salt, you may need help in planning your meals. Talk to your health care provider or dietitian. Remember there are many healthy ways to add taste without adding salt.

You can use less salt by doing these things:

• Read labels carefully. Look for any form of salt or sodium (another word for salt). Remember that baking soda, MSG, and baking powder have sodium, too. Do not use foods that have too much sodium.
• Add very little or no salt to the food you make.
• Do not add salt to food at the table.
• Watch what you eat when you eat out. Fast foods are often very high in salt, as are many other restaurant foods.

When cooking or preparing foods, stay away from:

• Ketchup, prepared mustard, pickles, and olives.
• Soy sauce, steak or barbecue sauce, chili sauce, or Worcestershire sauce.
• Bottled salad dressings.
• Bouillon cubes.
• Self-rising flour and biscuit mixes.

Don't eat foods high in salt, such as:

• Cured meats or fish (for example, bacon, luncheon meats, and canned sardines).
• Canned vegetables, soups, and other packaged foods.
• Cheeses and buttermilk.
• Salted nuts and peanut butter.
• Salted crackers, chips, popcorn, and pretzels.
• Instant cooked cereals.

You can get many of these foods with no or low salt. Read the labels. You may also want to try some of the many frozen low-salt and low-fat dinners.

Ask your health care provider about using salt substitutes. Many salt substitutes have potassium. You may need to watch how much potassium you use.

You can learn to cook without using salt.

You can be creative and make food look and taste great. It's a good idea to eat fresh foods as much as you can. Also, plain frozen fruits and vegetables usually do not have added salt.

Instead of salt, there are many kinds of things you can use to flavor your foods. You can try:

• Curry, cilantro, cumin, or ginger.
• Thyme, sage, bay leaf, or oregano.
• Onions, garlic, mushrooms, or tomatoes.
• Orange, lemon, lime juice, or wine.

Here are some other great suggestions:

• If you use canned products, use the low-salt types. Rinse canned vegetables with tap water before cooking.
• Use unsalted margarine instead of regular margarine or butter.
• Eat tuna and salmon. Rinse first with running water.

Take care of yourself.

Find out more about eating healthy foods. You can:

• Go to the library.
• Call the American Heart Association (1-800-242-8721).
• Ask your health care provider or dietitian for more information about eating right.
• Look at your bookstore for low-salt cookbooks.
• Remember to read food labels to find out how much salt and fat are used.

Take time to plan and enjoy your meals. It can be fun to learn to cook new dishes. And it's great to know that when you use less salt, you will lower your blood pressure.