Low-Sodium Cardiac Diet Menu

The American Heart Association recommends that healthy adults limit their daily salt intake to no more than 2,300mg. Those who suffer with hypertension, heart failure, and other cardiac conditions should consume even less. The average American eats 3,600 to 4,800mg of salt daily, which far exceeds the amount needed in a healthy diet. Small changes add up to large health benefits and there are many ways to decrease salt intake without sacrificing flavor.

Read the Labels

Since most salt comes from our highly processed diets, learn to read food labels. Salt hides under many other names, including monosodium glutamate (MSG), sodium benzoate. sodium citrate, and sodium nitrate/nitrite. Cured meats such as ham, bacon, and sausage are especially high in sodium.

Almost all boxed goods, such as cookies, cereal, chips, crackers, and frozen meals, are loaded with sodium. Canned goods such as soups and vegetables are another danger zone. Even if you can't taste the salt, it's still there.

The easiest way to compare foods for sodium content is by looking on the label where the percent of daily value is given. A box of frozen peas may have 125mg of sodium for a total of 5 percent of daily value. Compare that to the same peas in a can with 380mg of sodium, or 16 percent of daily value. The canned peas contain more than three times the amount of sodium.

DASH Diet

DASH to good health with the DASH diet. The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute recommends the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension diet to keep sodium consumption in check. The DASH diet relies on sensible food choices such as fish, nuts, whole grains, and poultry with less red meat, sweets, and fatty foods. It also suggests making gradually changes instead of a drastic diet overhaul.

Gradual Change

Make small changes over time, as it takes your taste buds a while to adjust to less salt. Most foods will taste better over time, since the true flavors aren't hidden under a blanket of salt. Start by adding one healthy vegetable to lunch and dinner. As long as it's not fried and salted, the choice is yours. Find fresh fruit you like and add it to breakfast.

Spices, especially fresh ones, are a great alternative to salt. Try one new spice each week in a casserole or other dish you may have added salt to before. Use meat as an added ingredient, not the main course. Soups and pasta are good ways to cut back on high-sodium meats. Some popular seasonings are high in sodium, including soy sauce, steak sauce, cooking sherry, meat tenderizer and Worcestershire sauce.

Reading Lessons

Try low-salt or no-salt-added versions of canned vegetables, which tend to be very high in sodium. To get rid of even more sodium, rinse in a colander under running water before cooking. On packaged foods, look for words such as unsalted, very low sodium and less sodium. Manufacturers may not use these claims unless the food contains less sodium than the original.

Today's food nutrition labels are one of the greatest health helpers around. Learn to decode them and you will find it much easier to make wise food choices. Teach your kids how to read them, too. Kids tend to imitate adults, so teach them at an early age how to choose healthy foods.