One of the components of heart healthy eating is to eat a low sodium diet and one that meets the cardiac diet menu guidelines. Eating a low sodium diet can be tricky, so here are some tips –
1. Learn what sodium is on the nutrition label. When you read a nutrition label, there is a section called “Sodium” that tells you how much is in the product by serving. The % Daily Value in the right column shows you how much of your daily limit (2,400 mg) that serving encompasses. You should aim for foods that are less than 10% of your daily limit (240mg) per serving.
2. An oldie but a goodie – take the salt shaker off the table. We don’t really need to add salt to food, most of it has enough. But getting used to the taste without it can be tough.
3. Use kosher salt if you must – this has lower sodium in the same size serving as regular salt. Try to use other flavors to enhance your foods instead of salt, like fresh herbs and pepper.
4. Use fresh or frozen vegetables and fruits instead of canned products. The canned products will usually have more salt in them and cause you to unknowingly eat more salt than you need. Learn through reading the labels. If you have canned vegetables, rinse them before you cook them after draining the liquid, you will lower the sodium about 33%.
5. Canned soups are the worst! Check out the aisles for lower sodium products that are made with wholesome ingredients, and see if you can make some on your own using lower sodium broths and more vegetables. Make a large batch and freeze individual portion sizes if you live alone. Put it in a Ziploc bag, lay it flat and let it freeze that way. You will have an easier time storing and thawing the soup.
When you are working hard to follow a low sodium menu plan, it can be tough to make sure you are getting what you need to meet your budget and still eat healthy. While some of the items may cost more, the savings in your health are worth it. Learning about how to eat healthier on a cardiac diet is easy in our Cardiac Diet Hub!
Have you recently started a low sodium diet? What did you do? Please leave me some comments!
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