What's the best way to cut down on salt

[tobetinytina]

I want to decrease my sodium levels but I don't know how to do this effectively in a realistic manner. What I mean is I do get that the best way to cut out salt is to pay attention to what I'm putting in my body, but I know myself, I'm not going to always read every label of everything I eat. Does anyone have some simple suggestions to help get me started on the right path?

[lia]

For starters, stop adding salt to your cooking, baking and food. You have total control over that. Once you've done that, you can then start paying attention to the amount of salt you eat in a day based on the packaged products that you eat.

[madscientist]

Cut out any pre-packaged and processed foods (ex. processed meats, frozen dinners, etc.). If you drink cola, ditch that too. Lots of pre-made stuff is loaded with as much salt as it has sugar. Even if you can't taste the salt, it's there. Also, remember that salt isn't always listed as sodium. Many products actually contain more than one salt product, such as MSG (mono sodium glutamate), which is VERY high in salt.

[bruceH]

honesty, pay attention to what you're putting in your body and put down the salt shaker. You need to read the ingredients of foods and avoid junk food whenever possible. Just remember that you don't want to cut out all salt. You do need some salt to be healthy, just not copious amounts of it.

[tobetinytina]

Thanks. I've already stopped adding salt to the things I cook and eat. Now I think I'll work on cutting out the MSG. I was really freaked when I saw how much of that stuff is in a lot of the foods I eat (including spices like lemon pepper!) Things like MSG really jack up the sodium levels in foods. Yikes!