If you have high blood pressure, it is important to eat less sodium and eat a heart-healthy diet. Choose low-sodium and low-fat foods that are high in fiber such as fruits, vegetables, grains and beans.
Cutting back on sodium is possible with a few small changes. Here are some tips to help you.
Hypertension and Nutrition
Avoid high amounts of sodium when choosing food.
Avoid highly processed food. This includes many packaged snacks and ‘ready to eat’ meals. These foods have lots of sodium, and often have added sugar and unhealthy fats.
Look for ‘lightly salted’, ‘low or reduced sodium’, or ‘no salt added’ products.
Good choices for processed food include:
- frozen vegetables without sauce
- canned vegetables labeled ‘no salt added’
- fresh or frozen poultry that doesn’t include ‘broth’, ‘saline’ or ‘sodium solution’
- low-sodium versions of your favorite foods
Learn to read the labels of processed food to understand how much sodium is in it.
Here’s what to look for:
- Snacks and side dishes: Less than 150-250 mg per serving
- Meal or entrée: Less than 400-600 mg per serving
Try to limit sodium to 1500-2300 mg per day.
Reduce salt and sodium when you cook at home.
Use less salt when cooking.
Don’t add salt to water for pasta, rice, or cereal.
Use herbs, onions, garlic, chilis, vinegar, and citrus to make your food taste good.
Combine low-sodium packaged food with regular-sodium foods to get used to the taste of low sodium. For example, combine half low-sodium tomato sauce and half regular tomato sauce.
Remove the salt shaker from the table. Taste food before adding salt.
Clinical review by Denise Ward, RDN, HealthPoint
Reviewed October 29, 2019
Sources: www.heart.org
This information is not intended to be medical advice. Please consult your doctor with any questions about your health.