Now we all know that the American diet is based on processed foods. While we are mostly concerned about the caloric content, the grams of fat, carbohydrates, or protein that our food consists of; we can often overlook the sodium levels. The average American consumes over 1,292mg of sodium per day than the recommended 2,300mg. Here are some of the trickiest foods you might eat regularly that are packed with salt.
1. Salad Dressing
Photo by Bernard Wen
Salad dressing is a tasty topping to your vegetables but if you don’t read the nutrition label, you could be in for a nasty surprise. I never use only two tablespoons of salad dressing on my salads which can rack up the salt levels if you don’t make sure of the ingredients
2. Soup
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This one might not be so secret, but canned soups often contain a hefty amount of salt. Each can is usually two servings as well which means if you eat the whole can you may be well on your way to the full day’s serving of sodium.
3. Breakfast Cereals
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Raisin Bran, Fiber One Honey Clusters, and many boxed oatmeals contain almost 300 mg of sodium per serving. More salt than a ‘healthy’ brand of cereal should normally contain.
4. Tomato Sauce
Photo by Judy Holtz
If you aren’t careful, the wrong tomato sauce from the grocery store can contain up to 400 mg of sodium per serving.
5. Cheese
Photo courtesy of Kirby Barth
Feta packs a whopping average of 316 mg of sodium per ounce. Cheddar and string cheeses are also high in sodium. The salt is added as a natural preservative and really sticks with you in that nutrition label. Sliced cheeses are packed with sodium so be wary when you put them on your sandwiches next time.