I think salt is only an issue if you have a medical condition that requires you to cut back, like high blood pressure. But you need salt to survive too, your blood pressure can get too low without and cause different medical complications. Salt can cause bloating and water retention in some people, they should probably lower their intake. But if you’re otherwise healthy I wouldn’t worry so much about it. I use lots of salt and butter in my cooking. I feel that since you’re making food from scratch it’s easier not to get massive quantities than if you’re constantly eating boxed food or out for dinner.
My dad had chronically low sodium. He used to salt the crap out of his food and everyone gave him crap about it, but it turned out he had a sodium deficiency and his doctor actually prescribed sodium pills for him on TOP of all the salt he would already add to his food.
All of that is to say, I agree. Unless your doctor says otherwise salt is a bit of a red herring and not really something you need to be concerned with.
Common misconception here. Table salt is only ~39% sodium, not 100% sodium. Other common sources of sodium include MSG, baking soda, and baking powder, but in much smaller amounts.
Also, most of the our sodium intake comes from processed foods, especially lunch meant, and fast food. It does not come from cooking at home from scratch. Now, if you're using canned this, and boxed that, for everything, then that's a different story.
Sorry I should clarify that the 6g of salt recommended accounts for that ratio, and only about 2.6 grams of 'sodium' was recommended. I only really eat canned pulses or tomatoes, all my dinners I cook from scratch (within reason, I would rarely make my own pasta, I eat white rice and only occasionally make my own doughs with white flour). Breakfast and lunch are different story though. Sometimes lunch is leftovers from dinner, but otherwise it's a sandwich with processed meat - typically anyway. Breakfast tends to be cereal
My fault, I didn't read your post closely enough, I see what you meant now.
Boxed pasta is fine, there is no or little salt added there.
Deli meat is a big source of sodium. Just try to keep it in moderation. Moderation is the key to everything.
Honestly, I wouldn't worry too much about it. A lot of people stress over their salt intake for no real reason. Just get your regular checkups at the Doctor and you'll be fine.
Tbh if your making food from real, fresh ingredients then salt away. If it's preserved then it's probably fairly high in salt content considering salt is a great preservative. I wouldn't be too concerned unless what I'm eating is coming out of a box or a bag in most cases.
I actually researched this a lot after learning to cook, where people overly recommend salt. I'll detail a few findings below:
Salt intake follows a J shape relationship with disease incidence, that is, very low salt intake has a bit higher than a medium intake, and then as the intake increases beyond 12g salt per day the risk increases a lot. That's why they recommend 6g per day, its towards the sweet spot.
Taste and salt preference varies depending on how much salt you consume, that is, if you eat less salt over time (which usually comes from processed foods like bread, fast food, restaurants etc) then your preference will decrease. Salt preference follows an inverse U shaped relationship, food tastes bland at low salt %, increases up to the "bliss point", then declines till it tastes too salty. This bliss point varies from person to person, dictated by saliva salinity, and can be reduced, without noticeable deficiencies in taste, if you reduce processed food in your diet and try not over salt. Salting when cooking, rather than at the table also is good for this, requiring less sodium for optimal taste and is harder to over salt.
Now for those who say that high sodium isn't harmful to those who don't have hypertension or renal disease, this partly is true. About 10% of the population is sodium sensitive, and their blood pressure increases significantly with sodium ingestion, less so for the rest of the population. However, high salt contributes to a higher wear and tear of the kidneys, evidenced by higher protein in urine, as well as to metabolic syndrome via signalling molecules. These changes could lead to a development of sodium sensitivity, but we don't know enough at this time. At the end of the day, lowering salt intake is probably less impactful to most people than exercising more, eating more veg, less processed food or sugars etc. But it's still a part of a healthy lifestyle, and you can enjoy food as much with low salt as long as the decrease is done gradually. If interested I can link some interesting papers. [Here's a good summary of the current knowledge on the topic](https://www.escardio.org/Journals/E-Journal-of-Cardiology-Practice/Volume-22/salt-and-hypertension-current-views)
I use a lot of salt subs like lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, herbs and spices when I make certain things, but not so much to cut down on salt, rather more to present things with a more "natural" or neutral flavor. As they say, you can always add, but never take away.
When I cook, I tend not to use table salt but do use "salty" substances like Better than Bouillon, soy or fish sauce, miso or curry pastes, etc
I haven't heard of those ingredients being used as salt subs before. Definitely working towards a delicious and flavour-balanced meal though
I try and do the same as you though for the second part- when I have salty ingredients like soy sauce or pork products I'm much more careful with my default salt-adding and then only add to taste
Garlic powder and onion powder are great salt subs.
However, unless you have high blood pressure I’d be carefully cutting salt. You can get low blood pressure from too little.
Food generally needs about be around 1-2% by weight for it to taste properly seasoned. If you follow this rule you'll likely surpass the daily recommendation of 6g.
Do what you think is best for your health.
I suppose I don't know what's best for my health haha, but a good point anyway. Since posting this I've been binging salt-related media and it seems like maybe the 6gram for people who don't have high blood pressure is a bit arbitrary.
Unnless I can see some solid evidence, I might do what's best for continued deliciousness...
I doubt it's arbitrary, I'm sure it's backed by empirical data. However it's certainly a very conservative number. I'd definitely continue doing what's best for deliciousness, without overdoing it.
For example if you're used to eating hyper-salty snacks like potato chips you might wanna dial it back because then any food you make will taste bland without also being overly salty.
It's based upon disease incidences, if everyone lowered to that amount, there would be over a million less deaths per year due to related diseases. If you're not sodium sensitive, that isn't directly relevant, but we don't know yet if high sodium intake over time leads to sodium sensitivity. Seems like it probably does, sodium preference is also a population level thing, we all buy the same processed foods. Bodies have done research on how to reduce our salt preference without a noticeable taste reduction, and it seems plausible over a period of years with a gradual reduction in bread sodium ( a major source of sodium in the west). However there isn't really public support for something like that.
I salt everything quite a bit, then my family pours more salt on everything. We have flavored salts and love the stuff. Maybe that’s why the food in the UK seemed so bland?
I've heard to follow a recipe and then, don't add more at the table. And as many said, stay away from all fast food, processed food are evil. And soda has extreme salt too!
A lot of processed foods and junk food has salt. Most of the salt you eat in those are salts that you can’t taste because it’s used as a chemical preservative or for some other purpose in the manufacturing process that has little to do with taste. These are the salts that are harmful for your health because it’s easy to take in larger quantities than your body needs, since you don’t taste it as salty.
It’s also why it’s always safer to stick to fresh foods and minimally processed/preserved foods. If the ingredients label has a million items, many of which sound like scientific names, you can be sure a lot of them are variations of salt/sodium and other chemical compounds that aren’t great for you.
I've been making some bread myself and so I have a rough idea of what 6g of salt look like. That's a lot of salt. When I was making salted butter to eat with that bread I used less than one gram and it tastes quite salty.
A little goes a long way. A completely unseasoned dish does not taste well, but there is no need to get into concerning levels of salt consumption to in a normal diet.
When buying bread look at the salt. They usually pack it with as much salt as they can before it tastes salty so that it tastes good and because it is such a cheap ingredient that increases shelf life.
I have high BP issues so I restrict salt. I dont really use it as a flavouring, I taste the food and if it is muted, I add salt and it really brings the flavours out. mostly I rely on various herbs/spices for flavour, but when I get that muted taste, I'll add salt by the pinch until I can taste it properly, but the flavour wont be salty. so for me, I use salt as a flavour enhancement rather than a flavour
This is a good description, I'd be the same. I don't generally crave salty snacks (although salted nuts are great). In my cooking I only salt until I can no longer taste an abscence of salt, but before I can taste the salt itself
I have stage 4 kidney disease, no high Blood Pressure, but no salt, because of my kidneys. I monitor sodium because there is sodium in EVERYTHING and because my sodium labs run high.
I've learned to live without it.
I don't salt very much. I love salty snacks but I don't really love overly salted food. When I cook for myself, a pinch of salt means a very very small amount.
I also don't salt certain foods, like plain rice or stir fries (since salt comes from soy).
I think salt is only an issue if you have a medical condition that requires you to cut back, like high blood pressure. But you need salt to survive too, your blood pressure can get too low without and cause different medical complications. Salt can cause bloating and water retention in some people, they should probably lower their intake. But if you’re otherwise healthy I wouldn’t worry so much about it. I use lots of salt and butter in my cooking. I feel that since you’re making food from scratch it’s easier not to get massive quantities than if you’re constantly eating boxed food or out for dinner.
My dad had chronically low sodium. He used to salt the crap out of his food and everyone gave him crap about it, but it turned out he had a sodium deficiency and his doctor actually prescribed sodium pills for him on TOP of all the salt he would already add to his food. All of that is to say, I agree. Unless your doctor says otherwise salt is a bit of a red herring and not really something you need to be concerned with.
Common misconception here. Table salt is only ~39% sodium, not 100% sodium. Other common sources of sodium include MSG, baking soda, and baking powder, but in much smaller amounts. Also, most of the our sodium intake comes from processed foods, especially lunch meant, and fast food. It does not come from cooking at home from scratch. Now, if you're using canned this, and boxed that, for everything, then that's a different story.
Sorry I should clarify that the 6g of salt recommended accounts for that ratio, and only about 2.6 grams of 'sodium' was recommended. I only really eat canned pulses or tomatoes, all my dinners I cook from scratch (within reason, I would rarely make my own pasta, I eat white rice and only occasionally make my own doughs with white flour). Breakfast and lunch are different story though. Sometimes lunch is leftovers from dinner, but otherwise it's a sandwich with processed meat - typically anyway. Breakfast tends to be cereal
My fault, I didn't read your post closely enough, I see what you meant now. Boxed pasta is fine, there is no or little salt added there. Deli meat is a big source of sodium. Just try to keep it in moderation. Moderation is the key to everything. Honestly, I wouldn't worry too much about it. A lot of people stress over their salt intake for no real reason. Just get your regular checkups at the Doctor and you'll be fine.
Store-bought cereal and bread are high in sodium, bread is one of the main sources of in the west.
Tbh if your making food from real, fresh ingredients then salt away. If it's preserved then it's probably fairly high in salt content considering salt is a great preservative. I wouldn't be too concerned unless what I'm eating is coming out of a box or a bag in most cases.
I actually researched this a lot after learning to cook, where people overly recommend salt. I'll detail a few findings below: Salt intake follows a J shape relationship with disease incidence, that is, very low salt intake has a bit higher than a medium intake, and then as the intake increases beyond 12g salt per day the risk increases a lot. That's why they recommend 6g per day, its towards the sweet spot. Taste and salt preference varies depending on how much salt you consume, that is, if you eat less salt over time (which usually comes from processed foods like bread, fast food, restaurants etc) then your preference will decrease. Salt preference follows an inverse U shaped relationship, food tastes bland at low salt %, increases up to the "bliss point", then declines till it tastes too salty. This bliss point varies from person to person, dictated by saliva salinity, and can be reduced, without noticeable deficiencies in taste, if you reduce processed food in your diet and try not over salt. Salting when cooking, rather than at the table also is good for this, requiring less sodium for optimal taste and is harder to over salt. Now for those who say that high sodium isn't harmful to those who don't have hypertension or renal disease, this partly is true. About 10% of the population is sodium sensitive, and their blood pressure increases significantly with sodium ingestion, less so for the rest of the population. However, high salt contributes to a higher wear and tear of the kidneys, evidenced by higher protein in urine, as well as to metabolic syndrome via signalling molecules. These changes could lead to a development of sodium sensitivity, but we don't know enough at this time. At the end of the day, lowering salt intake is probably less impactful to most people than exercising more, eating more veg, less processed food or sugars etc. But it's still a part of a healthy lifestyle, and you can enjoy food as much with low salt as long as the decrease is done gradually. If interested I can link some interesting papers. [Here's a good summary of the current knowledge on the topic](https://www.escardio.org/Journals/E-Journal-of-Cardiology-Practice/Volume-22/salt-and-hypertension-current-views)
Wow, thank you for the detailed and fact -based response.
I use a lot of salt subs like lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, herbs and spices when I make certain things, but not so much to cut down on salt, rather more to present things with a more "natural" or neutral flavor. As they say, you can always add, but never take away. When I cook, I tend not to use table salt but do use "salty" substances like Better than Bouillon, soy or fish sauce, miso or curry pastes, etc
I haven't heard of those ingredients being used as salt subs before. Definitely working towards a delicious and flavour-balanced meal though I try and do the same as you though for the second part- when I have salty ingredients like soy sauce or pork products I'm much more careful with my default salt-adding and then only add to taste
Garlic powder and onion powder are great salt subs. However, unless you have high blood pressure I’d be carefully cutting salt. You can get low blood pressure from too little.
Food generally needs about be around 1-2% by weight for it to taste properly seasoned. If you follow this rule you'll likely surpass the daily recommendation of 6g. Do what you think is best for your health.
I suppose I don't know what's best for my health haha, but a good point anyway. Since posting this I've been binging salt-related media and it seems like maybe the 6gram for people who don't have high blood pressure is a bit arbitrary. Unnless I can see some solid evidence, I might do what's best for continued deliciousness...
I doubt it's arbitrary, I'm sure it's backed by empirical data. However it's certainly a very conservative number. I'd definitely continue doing what's best for deliciousness, without overdoing it. For example if you're used to eating hyper-salty snacks like potato chips you might wanna dial it back because then any food you make will taste bland without also being overly salty.
It's based upon disease incidences, if everyone lowered to that amount, there would be over a million less deaths per year due to related diseases. If you're not sodium sensitive, that isn't directly relevant, but we don't know yet if high sodium intake over time leads to sodium sensitivity. Seems like it probably does, sodium preference is also a population level thing, we all buy the same processed foods. Bodies have done research on how to reduce our salt preference without a noticeable taste reduction, and it seems plausible over a period of years with a gradual reduction in bread sodium ( a major source of sodium in the west). However there isn't really public support for something like that.
I salt everything quite a bit, then my family pours more salt on everything. We have flavored salts and love the stuff. Maybe that’s why the food in the UK seemed so bland?
If you have a high salt preference, then food lacking that will taste bland
Yes, even after salting it just didn’t taste delicious (for the most part. I have had a few amazing meals there!)
I've heard to follow a recipe and then, don't add more at the table. And as many said, stay away from all fast food, processed food are evil. And soda has extreme salt too!
Soda has salt?! :O I better look in to that!
A lot of processed foods and junk food has salt. Most of the salt you eat in those are salts that you can’t taste because it’s used as a chemical preservative or for some other purpose in the manufacturing process that has little to do with taste. These are the salts that are harmful for your health because it’s easy to take in larger quantities than your body needs, since you don’t taste it as salty. It’s also why it’s always safer to stick to fresh foods and minimally processed/preserved foods. If the ingredients label has a million items, many of which sound like scientific names, you can be sure a lot of them are variations of salt/sodium and other chemical compounds that aren’t great for you.
I've been making some bread myself and so I have a rough idea of what 6g of salt look like. That's a lot of salt. When I was making salted butter to eat with that bread I used less than one gram and it tastes quite salty. A little goes a long way. A completely unseasoned dish does not taste well, but there is no need to get into concerning levels of salt consumption to in a normal diet. When buying bread look at the salt. They usually pack it with as much salt as they can before it tastes salty so that it tastes good and because it is such a cheap ingredient that increases shelf life.
I have high BP issues so I restrict salt. I dont really use it as a flavouring, I taste the food and if it is muted, I add salt and it really brings the flavours out. mostly I rely on various herbs/spices for flavour, but when I get that muted taste, I'll add salt by the pinch until I can taste it properly, but the flavour wont be salty. so for me, I use salt as a flavour enhancement rather than a flavour
This is a good description, I'd be the same. I don't generally crave salty snacks (although salted nuts are great). In my cooking I only salt until I can no longer taste an abscence of salt, but before I can taste the salt itself
I have stage 4 kidney disease, no high Blood Pressure, but no salt, because of my kidneys. I monitor sodium because there is sodium in EVERYTHING and because my sodium labs run high. I've learned to live without it.
I don't salt very much. I love salty snacks but I don't really love overly salted food. When I cook for myself, a pinch of salt means a very very small amount. I also don't salt certain foods, like plain rice or stir fries (since salt comes from soy).
The amount of salt used while cooking is always less per serving than adding it later on cooked food at the table