Get the Salt Out (5 page)

1
Avoid processed foods
as much as possible. Products that come in boxes, packages, and cans are designed for a long shelf life and are the number-one source of salt in our diets. In addition, they frequently contain sodium additives and preservatives, sugar and hydrogenated fats, all of which are known to cause health problems. For all of these reasons, your top priority in getting the salt out should be to eliminate these refined, fake foods.

2
Think fresh and natural.
Nature designed foods that are perfect for us—low in sodium but otherwise filled with nutrients. Fresh plant foods and unprocessed animal foods fit this description; all others don’t. Therefore, choosing foods low in sodium is relatively easy: when in doubt, opt for the more natural food choice.

3
Substitute unrefined sea salt or Real Salt for common table salt in your salt shaker.
Remember: the
kind
of salt you use is just as important as the amount of salt you use. Common table salt is harmful; it doesn’t dissolve in the body and tends to build up. Unrefined sea salt and Real Salt, however, are “good” salts the body can easily use for the many roles sodium plays. See Resources in the back of the book for information on where you can purchase Real Salt.

4
Use only the amount of salt that is right for you.
Sensitivity to salt, even to “good” kinds of salt, is an individual response. Some of us can tolerate moderate amounts easily, while others do much better with very little. Add the amount that is right for you. At home, have each family member salt his or her own food.

5
Eliminate, or at least reduce, the amount of salt used in cooking.
Salt added during the cooking of foods accounts for a big chunk of the sodium we consume: 45 percent. It also is not tasted as well by our taste buds as salt that is added to foods after cooking. Therefore, feel free to use natural salt at the table (which accounts for only 5 percent of our sodium intake), but try to eliminate salt and salt-containing ingredients from your recipes.

6
Become a consumer-sawy food detective:
seek out products that are low in sodium or have no salt added. An unsalted product used in place of a regularly salted ingredient often can reduce your sodium intake by hundreds, sometimes even a thousand milligrams, in one meal alone!

7
Make your meals come alive with savory salt-free seasonings
like garlic, herbs, and spices. If you use these seasonings in your cooking, then eating can become such a flavorful experience that you’ll never even miss the salt.

8
Use naturally salty nutritious foods like unprocessed cheese and reduced-sodium tamari (see tip 63) in small amounts.
When your diet as a whole is low in sodium, you can afford small amounts of salty natural foods in your diet for flavor. Remember to think of these foods as condiments though: a little bit of them can go a long way.

9
Emphasize the K factor at every meal.
K is the chemical symbol for potassium, a mineral that counteracts the effects of too much sodium in the diet. It is known to protect against hypertension, strokes, and heart disease. All natural foods contain
potassium, but fresh vegetables and fruits contain the most. Therefore, in keeping with the National Cancer Institute’s “Five a Day” campaign, try to have at least five servings of vegetables and fruits each day.

10
Eat for taste
and
good nutrition,
not just taste alone. Remember, our taste for salt has far exceeded our need. Food manufacturers and restaurants, in fact, frequently take advantage of the human taste for salt, making profits off the sales of poor-quality, nutrient-deficient but heavily salted foods we otherwise would not eat. It’s important to remember that your taste for salt can lessen, but your fundamental requirements for nutrients have to be met each and every day. They simply can’t be met by a diet high in salty processed foods.