Tag Archives: sodium

Sneaky Sodium Cuts

A tip of the hat to the Sneaky Mama — she’s got lots of great tips for sneaking healthy stuff into your favorite recipes! I’m thinking today about sneaking something OUT of my favorite foods: salt. Cutting your added salt intake by half can make a big difference in your risk of stroke, heart disease, and heart failure. According to a study from Shiraz University in Iran, just six weeks of reducing your salt intake can lower your systolic blood pressure by eight percent. That cuts your stroke risk by a third and your heart disease risk by a quarter. … Continue reading →

Reducing Sodium Around the World

A high sodium diet isn’t just a problem in the United States — it is a problem around the world! Too much salt can contribute to serious health issues like high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure. Technological advancements have helped reduce sodium levels in foods. In the 1960s, salt was used generously in frozen vegetables. Better freezing techniques have reduced the amount of sodium in frozen vegetables by more than seventy-five percent. That doesn’t mean all frozen veggies are safe and healthy — check the sodium content in sauces. Around the world, governments are making an effort … Continue reading →

U.S. Foodmakers Asked to Cut the Salt

Most people in America eat two teaspoons of salt every day. That’s more than twice what your body needs to be healthy! And no, most of us aren’t getting all that salt out of a shaker. We’re not snacking on salt-pops or drinking salt soda. More than three-fourths of the salt in the American diet comes from common processed foods. Health experts and advocates are concerned. They are hoping that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will respond to a petition asking for government intervention in regulating sodium levels. The Center for Science in the Public Interest filed the petition … Continue reading →

Hot Dogs and Your Health

What goes better with summer’s favorite pastime than a juicy hotdog? According to the National Hotdog and Sausage Council baseball fans will eat almost 28 million hotdogs this year. Personally, I can’t stand hotdogs… and I’m not a huge fan of baseball either. (I wonder if one begets the other?) In fact, I cringe whenever I hear my young daughter tell me that she was fed a hotdog at a friend or relative’s home. Forgive me. It’s just that I have a long-standing dislike for the popular frankfurter mainly because I spent the better part of my childhood hearing about … Continue reading →

Salt Does a Body Good

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We’ve talked about our body’s need for water before, during and after exercise. But during the hot months of summer, regular outdoor exercise can cause fatigue related to a lack of sugar, calories and salt. The loss of salt is not one many of us pay attention to, however. Sports drinks have sodium in them (did you know that?) and studies have found that athletes who drink salty drinks before they compete did better. Salt Does a Body Good Salty drinks help athletes have larger blood volumes. Salty drinks also make you thirstier and you will drink more water and … Continue reading →

Eating Healthy on the Run

Sometimes, I’m too impulsive. I’ll get a spur of the moment idea and run with it. That’s how I found myself in a classroom again. I wanted something to do while my kids were in school, so I thought it might be a good idea to take classes, full-time, at a university. My goodness, I wasn’t prepared for it. For eight years, I did what I wanted, when I wanted. Suddenly, I was studying for hours and I had no social life. It wasn’t long before I missed those afternoon naps I used to take… and it showed. I hadn’t … Continue reading →

Confessions Of A Reformed Salt Addict

Did you know the average American eats two to three times the recommended amount of salt, every day? How does this happen? Easy. If you were to take an informal survey regarding what people watch more carefully: their cholesterol level, fat intake or sodium level, I’m sure you would find that most would admit they concentrate more on the two former than the latter. I, on the other hand, obsess about my sodium intake. When I trained for all of my marathons I carefully monitored my sodium intake, likewise when I was pregnant. Not because I have a medical condition … Continue reading →

Too Much Water?

Is there such a thing as too much water? Let’s consider this. Water is important to cooling your body and to eliminating waste from your system. You have to remember that more than half your human body is water. You receive water and hydration from numerous sources and are not limited to drinking only water. Most recommendations suggest 8 8-ounce glasses of water a day. If you are like me though, the idea of trying to gulp down 64+ ounces of water is not really that appealing. New studies suggest that only about 80 percent of your water is obtained … Continue reading →

Lower Salt For Better Health

It’s hard to avoid salt. It’s everywhere! And if you’re living one of those rush-everywhere no-time-to-cook days, weeks, or months… you may be eating a lot of those prepackaged dinners. Those things are loaded with salt. A recent study out of Great Britain found that cutting just three grams of salt out of your daily diet can reduce your risk of stroke by thirteen percent and your risk of heart disease by ten percent. The average person eats nine grams of salt per day, so reducing your salt intake to six grams per day would be ideal. I just grabbed … Continue reading →