A Loupe View of the Most Sodium-Rich Foods

Cut Down Intake of Processed Foods to Maintain Balanced Sodium Levels

When you feel that reducing salt usage in your daily cooking can make a great change in your pressure levels, you are absolutely mistaken. The real culprits are the foods given below as the salt used for cooking is responsible for only 11% of the total sodium consumed by any individual.

Cold Cuts & Meats

Deli or packaged meats may contain as much as 1,050 milligrams of sodium per serving while the recommended sodium levels are only 1,500 milligrams for individuals with blood pressure and 2,300 for normal individuals. Although sodium is needed to preserve the meats from getting spoilt, it need not be this high. It is better to compare nutrition labels and choose the one that contains a lower sodium value comparatively.

Cheesy Pizzas

We try to limit pizzas for their high calorie values. But a slice of pizza can contain up to 760 milligrams of sodium and eating a few slices can make you easily exceed the daily recommended levels too. Use more veggies in your pizza with less cheese or you can even replace some of your slices with a colorful bowl of salad. The best is to make a homemade pizza with all the healthy ingredients of your choice. Healthy ingredients and whole-wheat pizza bases are a great choice for which you can use the ideas given at www.firsteatright.com.

Soups

You get all the goodness when you finish off a bowl of soup prepared by your loving mom/dad. One cup of canned chicken noodle soup purchased from the supermarket can have up to 940 milligrams of sodium. Try to prepare a big batch on your own and freeze the leftovers or if you don’t have time to prepare the soup yourself, at least add frozen veggies to a lower-sodium variety of canned soup to reduce the amount of sodium present in each serving.

Breads and Rolls

Whole grain breads are preferred by most of us for a quick breakfast or snack. But do you know that a single slice of bread can have as much as 230 milligrams of sodium. Eating a toast for breakfast, veggie sandwich for lunch and rolls for dinner can exceed the healthy sodium limits. Choose bread loaves having thinner slices as they are said to contain fewer calories and reduced sodium levels as well.

Chicken

Balanced portions of lean, skinless grilled chicken are good for health. Chicken nuggets are loaded with added salt and even fresh poultry is injected with sodium solutions. Only 85 grams (almost the size of your palm) of frozen and breaded nuggets can contain up to 600 milligrams of sodium. Check the label before buying poultry-the sodium content should not exceed 100 milligrams for a 113-gram serving of poultry.

Burritos and Tacos

It’s shocking to know that two teaspoons of taco seasoning can have 411 mg of sodium. Best way to eat a yummy taco is to prepare our own seasonings for better health and flavor. Combining ½ teaspoon each of cumin, oregano, chili powder and garlic powder amounts to only 42 mg of sodium giving you delicious and nutritious tacos.