America’s addiction to salt
Last week was our grandson Aiden’s 15th birthday and we were invited to go out to dinner with him and his family. What a nice treat; we rarely go out to restaurants these days. Since most eateries now put the calorie count on their menus, the pleasure of eating out has greatly diminished. I always knew those counts were high – but do they have to stare me in the face? I told myself that by dividing my meal and taking half home for the next day, I would survive. Restaurant food is prepared to be delicious – not healthy. The book I use to teach nutrition in home school suggests that most restaurant meals contain one stick of butter, other fat sources and way too much sodium. Today we will concentrate on America’s salt addiction.
When our waiter placed the breadsticks on the table, I could see big chunks of salt swimming on the butter that was floating on each breadstick. Everyone but me reached for one. My son-in-law suggested I order some without the salt and the waiter was happy to oblige. A few minutes later he placed a basket of naked breadsticks – no salt or butter – on the table. I am sure the breadsticks themselves are no bastions of healthy fare, but that is no rationale to load them with additional fat and salt. I took a bite – and my taste buds lit up with the flavor of hot, just-out-of-the-oven bread. Not butter; not salt; but bread. Yum. I explained this phenomenon to the others and Randy, Aiden and his brother Hoyt took me up on my offer to taste a breadstick sans butter and salt chunks. Each of them agreed with me: the taste that burst forth was that of bread.
Several years ago, the restaurants in our area went through the phase of coating baked potatoes in fat and sprinkling a week’s supply of salt on the skins before wrapping and baking. Of course, on the menu they were listed only as “baked potatoes” – not “baked potatoes drowning in fat and salt.” The first time I unwrapped one of these, I was horrified. I never put salt on my baked potatoes (after garnishing one with sour cream and butter, there is no need for additional salt) and now the skin – my favorite part – was encrusted. When I asked for a potato without this addition, I was informed I would have to wait an hour because, “We bake all our potatoes that way.” Instead, I asked for extra napkins and attempted, to little avail, to remove the culprits. I learned my lesson and from that point forward, always asked the preparation method for baked potatoes before ordering. It seems that particular fad has fallen out of favor, which is a good thing. From my point of view, it really was overkill.
Most people like salt and when I express my dislike for excessive salt, I am usually met with comments such as, “But it adds so much flavor.” Yes, the flavor of salt. I happen to prefer the flavor of various foods. There are some foods whose flavor is greatly enhanced by the addition of a little salt – grits come to mind. However, it has become customary to salt almost anything that is not dessert, and in recent years even that has come under attack, i. e. salted caramel. When I watch chefs on television, I am amazed at the amount of salt they use as they grab fingerfuls out of cute little dishes and “sprinkle a little here and a little more there.” I really think I would gag on the finished product.
My aversion to salt has grown over the years. My mother developed high blood pressure when I was in the fifth grade. She had to cut her salt intake, and I also developed that habit and became accustomed to eating foods without adding salt. Now, I am very sensitive to the taste of salty/oversalted foods. If it was up to me, I would not even have a saltshaker in my kitchen. Let me challenge you to try this – if you dare. The next time you order French fries (that may not be the best example to encourage healthy eating, but almost everyone has a fry once or twice a year) request no salt. You may be amazed at the pure flavor of potato. Or you may gag.
The real significance of salt intake does not lie in its flavor – but its effect on overall physical health. Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride. Saltiness is one of the basic human tastes and salt is essential for life. However, excessive salt consumption has been shown to increase the probability of many health risks.
Research shows that Americans consume way too much salt in their diets. Most adults ingest about 3400 milligrams or about 1.5 teaspoon of salt per day. That is much more than our bodies need. The guidelines for Adequate Intake of Sodium, an amount which is based on the lowest level of sodium to prevent a deficiency while allowing for an adequate intake has been established at 1,500 milligrams a day. Although the FDA does not currently set a limit on the amount of sodium allowed in our food, it advises a daily consumption of no more than 2,300 milligrams per day. Here is a list of the approximate amounts of sodium in a given amount of salt:
- ¼ teaspoon – 575 mg
- ½ teaspoon – 1,150 mg
- ¾ teaspoon – 1,725 mg
- 1 teaspoon – 2,300 mg
When people learn about excessive salt intake, they are often surprised, noting that they hardly ever use their saltshaker. (And then there are the people who automatically salt everything on their plate before they even taste the food. I wonder when these saltaholics actually tasted any flavor except salty.) Research suggests that almost 75% of sodium consumed by the average person comes from processed, pre-packaged food and restaurant meals – and not just fat-food restaurants; even meals at gourmet eateries are often salt-laden. When you check the nutritional labels at the grocery store, always note the amount of sodium; one serving of these foods often has at least 50% or more of the daily recommended amount. Canned soups are a leading offender. About 15% of sodium occurs naturally in food and about 10% is added during cooking or at the table. These stats indicate that even without adding salt in the kitchen, it is easy to overdo sodium intake.
We will stop here today. Next week’s topics include types of salt; symptoms caused by consuming excessive amounts of salt; high-sodium health risks; and suggestions for curbing salt-intake to improve your health and that of your recipient.
Caring Quote: Sodium is an important mineral that is essential for proper functioning of the human body – however, the American diet contains dangerously high amounts of sodium, almost 80 percent of which comes from processed and restaurant foods. – Joel Fuhrman