Even if you don’t add salt to your food, chances are you are still getting well over the recommended daily limit of sodium from your daily diet.
Most processed foods and pre-made ingredients are high in salt. So unless your meals come straight from the farm or garden, the food you’re eating every day could be laying the groundwork for some serious health problems.
Salt intake is dangerous
The following is an extract from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), there is a link between salt, high blood pressure, and heart disease—the leading killer of American men and women. For normal functioning, the body requires very little sodium. The high sodium content of American food means that Americans consume far too much sodium each day.
“High sodium consumption can raise blood pressure, and high blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke,”The CDC warns. “Most of the sodium we consume is in the form of salt.”
Refer to the Daily Recommended Limit
The 2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for AmericansAccording to the Department of Agriculture, we should not consume more than 2,300 mg of sodium per day in order to maintain a healthy diet.
However, nearly 90% of Americans aged two or older consume more sodium than the recommended daily intake. Research shows that Americans consume more than 3,400mg of sodium per day.
This data shows that around 70% of the sodium we eat is processed or from restaurants. A small percentage of sodium is added to foods or used in cooking. The food industry makes it very difficult to maintain low sodium levels. No matter what food you eat.
Surprisingly, the worst culprits may surprise you
Even if you believe you are eating well, it could be that you are consuming too much sodium. According to Dr. Stephen Juraschek—an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School who researches sodium and hypertension—most of his patients don’t realize how much salt is in “healthy”Food options
“I’ve found salad dressings where a single serving (2 tablespoons) had over 23 percent of one’s daily value in sodium,” CNN was able to hear Dr. Juraschek explain it.. “Most of my patients do not add salt at the dinner table, but don’t realize that bread rolls, canned vegetables, and chicken breasts are among the worst culprits in the US.”
Dr. Janet Woodcock—acting commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)—said in a media briefing that hidden sources of sodium are hidden everywhere in our diets.
“Who would think bread? And yet bread is one of the highest sources of sodium that people are getting,”CNN interviewed Woodcock. “The problem is that it’s so cumulative: the tomato sauce, the peas, the bread, the salad dressing. Pretty soon your whole meal has hidden salt in it, and it’s really hard right now for people to manage that on their own.”
New Salt Guidelines Set by FDA
Woodcock and her colleagues at The are concerned about the high sodium levels in prepared and processed food. FDA just released new voluntary guidelines. The goal is to lower sodium levels in 163 different categories. “the most consumed processed, packaged, and prepared foods.”
“The targets seek to decrease average sodium intake from approximately 3,400 milligrams (mg) to 3,000 mg per day, about a 12% reduction, over the next 2.5 years,” In a statement, the FDA announced the new guidelines.
Is it Low Enough?
The The top takeaway from this announcementThe new guidelines are still significantly higher than those set forth by the federal nutrition guidelines and the American Heart Association (AHA).
The 2,300 mg daily recommended intake for adults is not enough. However, the guideline to be consumed by people at high risk for hypertension is 1,500 mg. According to AHA, these new FDA guidelines are an “amenable” recommendation. “step forward.” However, the 3,000 mg/day target that they set for food manufacturers wasn’t low enough.
“Lowering sodium further to 2,300 mg could prevent an estimated 450,000 cases of cardiovascular disease, gain two million quality-adjusted life years and save approximately $40 billion in health-care costs over a 20-year period,” In a statement, the AHA stated.
Woodcock explained that FDA decided to increase the level of 3,000mg in order for people to gradually reduce their intake of foods with higher salt levels.
Experts are skeptical
Despite the good intentions of the new FDA guidelines, experts aren’t convinced that they will do any good.
“The first issue is that this is voluntary. Food companies don’t have to pay any attention to it at all,” nutrition researcher Marion Nestle—author of Unsavory Truth: How Food Companies Trick the Science of What We Eat—told CNN.
Dr. Juraschek noted that it’s not clear that voluntary recommendations are helpful. He pointed to the FDA’s call to action back in 2016 for food manufacturers to reduce sodium levels.
“I don’t think the manufacturers I’ve spoken with inherently like the idea of harming people, but when faced with the expense of discontinuing a product or changing industrial processes, I think a voluntary mandate may not provide enough activation energy to make a difference,”He said.
Instead, Dr. Juraschek thinks that change shouldn’t be delayed. He wants to see FDA and other government agency enforce salt limits in food. He also would like to see transparent warning labels on packaging.
It’s Up To You
It doesn’t matter how much salt you eat. The consumer is responsible for reading nutrition labels and understanding sodium levels. By speaking out, the public can encourage food companies to make these important changes without requiring government mandates.