The Flavor of Food Is Not in Its Salt! Harmful Effects of Salt and Recommendations for Reducing It

Excessive salt consumption can cause significant harm to health because of its sodium content, particularly by increasing the risk of stomach cancer and hypertension. In this article, we will answer questions such as “Which diseases does salt increase the risk of?”, “Which foods are high in sodium?” and “What can you do to consume less salt?”

With the symbol Na in the periodic table, sodium is a mineral that helps balance fluids in the body. It is found in almost all foods. The maximum total amount of sodium a healthy person should obtain from their daily diet is 2 grams. A teaspoon of salt contains 2.3 gr of sodium; therefore, consuming less than a teaspoon of salt per day is important for health. Before considering the table salt we add, being aware of the sodium content of every food we eat is the first step toward consuming less salt.

• How much salt is too much? (detailed)

A Low-Sodium Diet Helps You Cope with the Following Health Problems:

• High blood pressure (hypertension)
• Obesity (weight gain caused by water retention and excessive stimulation of the sense of taste)
• Impaired liver function
• Cardiovascular diseases Kidney diseases (such as kidney stones and chronic kidney failure)
• Stomach cancer - Symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of FOOD ADDICTION in 8 steps

Remember That We Get Salt from Almost Every Food Even When We Do Not Add It to Meals

Even without adding salt to our meals, particularly when we consider Turkish culinary culture, we actually meet our needs and harm our health with the excess. If you are over 51 or have at least one of hypertension, diabetes or chronic kidney disease, you should not consume more than 1,5 milligrams of salt per day.

Even if your food does not taste salty, it may still be high in salt/sodium. Pay particular attention to hidden salt in these foods:

• Canned vegetables
• Canned dried legumes (beans, chickpeas)
• Frozen foods
• Breads
• Chips and crackers
• Processed meats such as sucuk and sausages
• Instant soups

In addition, some foods, such as cheese, seafood and olives, naturally contain high amounts of salt. More moderate consumption of these foods is therefore recommended. Pay attention to portion sizes both to avoid extra salt and to control your weight.

Recommendations for Consuming Less Salt

• Educate Yourself: You may not be sure whether foods are high in sodium or, similarly, in calories. Always read nutrition labels before eating packaged foods. Developing this habit will benefit your health and increase awareness of your diet. For example, reading the labels on sauces such as mustard and ketchup shows how high their salt/sodium content is.
• Use Fresh Ingredients: You may choose canned or ready-made meals because they are easier or quicker. However, these foods are generally among the packaged products containing the most salt. We recommend eating freshly prepared meals to consume less salt. Suppose you are making tarhana soup and choose canned chickpeas because you will add only a small amount, thereby increasing your sodium intake. Instead, for example, you can boil all the chickpeas you will consume in a month at once, freeze them in small packages and conveniently take them out as needed.
• Discover Flavors Without Salt: When cooking or sitting down to eat, we add salt almost before tasting the food. Instead, you can discover different, healthier flavors by adding fresh herbs, spices, onions, garlic, lemon juice or peppers. For example, you can make baked potatoes healthier and very tasty without salt by adding a little olive oil, black pepper and fresh rosemary.
• Choose Low-Salt Snacks: Many of us love snacking. Snacks such as crackers, chips or salted roasted nuts are both very fatty and very salty. Instead, choose unsalted nuts during the day and, for evening snacks, healthy options such as a bowl of lightly spiced popcorn, cucumber or carrots. Sprinkling your favorite spices into a bowl of yogurt and dipping crunchy vegetables such as celery sticks or cucumber into it is another beneficial choice that can satisfy the urge to eat junk food with sauces.
• Popcorn as a healthy snack
• Avoid Processed Meats: Processed meats such as salami, sausages, sucuk and ham contain high amounts of sodium. They are also very fatty and cause weight gain. Processed meats, which also increase the risk of some cancersshould be consumed as little as possible or avoided altogether.

Conclusion

Although a maximum daily salt intake of 6 grams is recommended, no country worldwide can be said to have achieved ideal salt consumption figures. There are even recent popular or fashionable approaches promoting salt consumption, which have seriously undermined efforts to combat excessive salt intake. Attempts are also made to portray excessive salt consumption as harmless through the misconception that certain salts are healthier.

The graph below shows the relationship between salt intake and stomach cancer and how death rates from stomach cancer increase as salt intake rises. The most important cause of stomach cancer is infection with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori. High salt intake is known to facilitate the establishment of Helicobacter pylori in the stomach and potentially worsen the infection.

Gradually reducing your salt intake can make it easier to give it up. Do not postpone this; pay attention to these points at your next meal. Remember, the more often you do something, the more it becomes a habit. And one more reminder: there is no healthier salt!

• What is Himalayan salt? Effects, misconceptions and health risks