CDC Says 90% of Americans Eat Too Much Salt. Do You?
There's no denying it, our bodies need salt. The exact amount that is needed varies according to weight and a variety of other factors too complicated for mere mortals to understand. Researchers are still grappling with these questions and the hope is that they can begin to define the outer limits by calculating when we each too much of the condiment that adds taste and flavor, even enhancing dishes that are sweet by making them vibrant and lustrous to our taste buds. So in recognition of American Heart Month in February, CDC's Vital Signs narrows in on the amount of sodium in Americans' diets.
Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 90 percent of Americans over the age of two are ingesting too much sodium. Consider Superbowl Sunday when you scarf all those salt-loaded treats, dips and buffet items, like barbecue, huge hero sandwiches, cheese, and chili. However, the sodium overload eventually leaches out of your system after a few days as you flush the salt out with water and other beverages and your body returns to its near homeostatic balance, hopefully, unless, of course, you continued to celebrate the Giants' win and overloaded until after Tuesday's parade.
All these sodium loaded treats may seem like the culprit, but there is something far more insidious. Can you guess what it is? It's Bread! Yes. Next time you pick up a loaf of Arnold's Seven Grain bread check the sodium content and you'll be shocked. The CDC places bread products first on its list for a salt oversupply. One slice of packaged bread? It can contain 200 milligrams of salt. What about fresh baked bread? What about it? It may have even more, but you will never know. Certainly it is so delicious, if you eat more, you'll down more salt. If you have three slices of bread, one for each meal, you've easily downed 600 milligrams of salt. If you had any other processed or prepackaged food products that day, chances are they are also loaded with salt.
In addition to those breads and rolls, 40-percent of sodium comes from these nine other items: Cold cuts and cured meats such as deli or packaged ham or turkey, pizza, fresh and processed poultry, soups, sandwiches such as cheeseburgers, cheese, pasta dishes (from package) meat mixed dishes such as meat loaf with tomato sauce, and snacks such as chips, pretzels, and popcorn. Depending upon the brand of of food, you may walk away with more salt in your body from brand to brand. For example, sodium in chicken noodle soup can vary by as much as 840 milligrams (mg) per serving. Sixty-five percent of sodium you eat comes from food bought at retail stores and about twenty-five percent comes from restaurants.
Continued on the next page
Follow Technorati