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Consuming too much salt is bad for the body: the seasoning is rich in sodium, which needs to be consumed in moderation

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Table salt, or refined salt, is the popular name for sodium chloride (NaCl). Crystals of this chemical compound contain an average of 39% sodium and 61% chlorine. Sodium is an essential nutrient for our health. It is present in everything from our blood to the oceans. In the human body, it represents about 1.5% of the body mass, that is, a person weighing 50 kg has 75 g of salt. Despite being essential to keep the body functioning, excess sodium can cause serious health problems, such as fluid retention in the body, increased blood pressure, development of cardiovascular disease and kidney problems. In addition to consuming a lot of salt with food, the big problem is that sodium is present in industrialized products (even those with a sweet taste), it integrates the formulation of preservatives (sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate), sweeteners (cyclamate). sodium and sodium saccharin), yeasts (sodium bicarbonate) and flavor enhancers (monosodium glutamate).

In Brazil, a daily intake of 2 g (2000 mg) of sodium is recommended. However, according to a survey by the Brazilian Association of Food Industries (Abia), Brazilians consume an average of 4.5 g of sodium daily. Are you also part of the group of people who consume a lot of salt? Unless you have low blood pressure and eating a lot of salt is a doctor's recommendation, take a look at these tips for reducing excess salt and lowering the daily intake of sodium in your diet. This will alleviate (or prevent) many health problems.

Tips for those who eat a lot of salt

1. Decrease salt gradually

Don't try to cut salt out of your food at once; do this process gradually, so you won't get discouraged and will create time for your taste buds to get used to.

2. Replace salt with other seasonings

Pepper, lemon, herbs, gersal, onion and garlic are great seasoning options that have much lower amounts of sodium when compared to table salt.

3. Read the packaging

When we observe how much sodium is present in the foods we consume, its control becomes easier, encouraging the switch to products with lower amounts of sodium. Often, similar products can have very different levels of sodium.

4. Avoid consuming products high in sodium

Instant noodles, Parmesan cheese, and soy sauce are examples of some foods high in sodium.

5. Take the salt shaker off the table

Removing the salt shaker from the table prevents you from adding more salt to your food.

6. Avoid snacks

Foods like peanuts and potato chips have high amounts of salt in their composition. Invest in healthier options.

7. Prefer fresh products to frozen ones

Frozen foods have large amounts of salt, which help to keep them longer.

8. Choose a healthier breakfast

Replace the famous bread with butter and industrialized products, such as cereals, with fresh fruits and wholegrain breads.

9. Modify the recipes

Avoid putting too much salt in your dish recipes. Whenever possible, reduce the salt. In some cases, it is possible to cut the amount in half without losing the flavor of the food.

10. Choose sea salt over common table salt

As it does not go through a refining process, sea salt has several mineral salts, which are beneficial to our body. A survey by USP analyzed the nutrients and amounts of sodium present in various types of salt. The results indicate that sea salt is more nutritious than refined salt, but there is little variation. In practice, this means that the control must be equal to that of common table salt, as sea salt also has high levels of sodium (learn about other types of salt by clicking here). If you can afford to use Himalayan salt, even better - but the precautions remain the same.

11. Look for new ways to prepare your dishes

When grilling vegetables, for example, it is possible to maintain the flavor of the food, reducing the need for condiments.

12. Avoid industrialized seasonings

Industrialized spices have very high levels of sodium, in addition to large amounts of fat. Most of them, which are used in the preparation of broths, sauces, seasonings and other recipes, have amounts of sodium that come close to the recommended amount of daily intake.

13. Avoid light products

To reduce the amount of calories in the products, salt is added to ensure consistency and texture. An example of this are light sodas, which despite having almost no calories, have more than double the amount of sodium in conventional versions.

14. Cut processed and cured meats

Processed meats are rich in sodium and preservatives that are bad for our health. Cured meats have large amounts of salt, which is used in the manufacturing process, in which salt acts as a natural preservative.

15. Avoid processed and canned products

These foods have large amounts of sodium in their composition;

16. Dispose of water from canned products

Discarding the water present in canned products can reduce the amount of sodium present in the food by up to 50%;

17. Try to use products without preservatives

Preservatives, yeasts, sweeteners and flavor enhancers, which are present in many industrialized products, have large amounts of sodium.

18. Find a nutritionist

For better control of ingested sodium levels, enlist the help of a nutritionist; the professional will help you choose the right foods and make the sodium reduction process less painful.

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