More than 90% of US adults eat too much salt and very little of it comes from the salt shaker. Over 75% of the salt eaten every day comes from ready-to-eat foods – take-out dinners, restaurant meals, pizza, soup, snacks, candy, cakes and soda. Fewer than half the foods we toss into our grocery cart meet the FDA’s healthy sodium-per-serving labeling recommendation – less than 600 milligrams for meals and less than 480 milligrams for individual servings of food. In fact, 70% of pizzas, pasta dinners and meat meals and 50% to 70% of cold cuts, soups, and sandwiches exceed the FDA healthy labeling standards for sodium.
If you want to eat less sodium, you need to be your own sodium sleuth in the grocery store.
Use the nutrition facts label.
Less than 20 milligrams per serving is a low sodium food
More than 480 milligrams per serving is a moderate sodium snack or meal
More than 600 milligrams per meal is high sodium
Buy less prepared food and choice more fresh meat, poultry, fish, fruits and vegetables.
