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Sodium in Your Diet
Aug 5, 2014
Have You Been Told to Lower the Sodium in Your Diet?
At Diet-to-Go, we are committed to your success and to your health! That’s why we’re continually improving the taste, quality and nutritional value of our meals. One nutrient that we’re focused on in particular is sodium.
When your doctor, trainer, or nutritionist says to “lower the sodium in your diet,” you first need to look at what you’re currently eating. For most Americans, it’s a diet that contains well over 3,000 mg of sodium per day. While health professionals continually recommend that we “lower sodium,” it isn’t always clear how to go about doing this.
Start by avoiding salt from the salt shaker both at the table and in cooking. It’s also a good idea to take a close look at the foods consumed from restaurants and fast-service establishments, as well as those that are pre-packaged and highly-processed, as these foods make up a whopping 75% of the sodium in our diets.
Diet-to-Go can help - by choosing the Balance Meal Plan or the Vegetarian Meal Plan, you’ll be within the recommended range of sodium for most healthy adults. You don’t need to read labels, cook or clean up – we do it all for you!
What Does the Research Say About Sodium in the Diet?
As with most good stories, there are two sides. The Dietary Approaches to Stopping Hypertension (DASH) Diet study, as well as the Trials of Hypertension Prevention (TOHP), both provide good evidence for lowering sodium in Americans’ diets, but there is also evidence that consuming too little salt in your diet can be a health risk. According to a recent study published in the American Journal of Hypertension there is evidence that 2,645 – 4,945 mg sodium per day, close to the average daily sodium intake of most Americans, is actually associated with better health outcomes than intake levels currently recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and major health departments, which are now being viewed by many in the scientific community as “excessively and unrealistically low.” The study’s lead author, Dr. Niels Grudal, says, "Our results are in line with the Institute of Medicine’s concern that lower levels could produce harm, and they provide a concrete basis for revising the recommended range in the best interest of public health."
Gabe Mirkin, M.D., sports medicine doctor, fitness guru and long-time radio host, agrees with the findings. He points out that, “Not everyone who takes in large amounts of salt will develop high blood pressure. People who develop high blood pressure from excessive salt intake are called salt sensitive....” Read more on sodium from Dr. Mirkin.
Diet-to-Go's 1200-calorie Balance Meal Plan – our most popular plan - averages about 1550 mg of sodium, which is well below the U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommended level of 2,300mg of sodium per day. This is significantly lower than what the average person consumes, which is about 3,400 mg per day.
If you want to customize your meal plan even further, Diet-to-Go’s full-time Certified Health Coach can help you. Contact us at nutritionteam@diettogo.com for more information.
Author: Kristen Ciuba
Kristen is a Nutritionist at Diet-to-Go, based in Lorton, VA. She tries to “practice what she preaches” by fitting in healthy foods and cooking, challenging exercise, and quality time with family and friends every day!
