Your child may need to follow a low sodium diet if his blood pressure is high, if his body is retaining too much water, or
if he is on steroid (prednisone) therapy. This information will help you choose foods that are low in sodium.
What is sodium?
Sodium is a mineral found in our bodies that helps control the body’s water balance and blood pressure. In other words, the
amount of sodium in the body helps set how much water is in the body, which in turn regulates blood pressure.
We get sodium from the foods we eat. Most of the sodium we eat comes from salt we or food producers add to foods. Salt is
also known as sodium because its chemical name is sodium chloride (NaCl). Salt, and therefore sodium, is often added to foods
just before eating. For example, you add sodium by shaking table salt on food. But salt is also added to many foods long before
they reach your dinner table, for example, in processed and convenience foods.
The importance of sodium
Everyone needs some sodium each day. But most people get much more sodium in their diet than they need. This can become a
problem for people with high blood pressure, kidney disease, or heart disease. Too much sodium can also be a problem for people
who are on steroid therapy for some other condition.
Signs of too much sodium
Too much sodium causes fluid retention, which is also called edema. Fluid retention can raise blood pressure and put an extra
strain on the kidneys and the heart. If you eat more sodium than your body can handle, you may notice some of the following
effects:
-
puffiness around the eyes
-
swelling in the ankles, feet, or hands
-
high blood pressure
Eatiug lots of sodium also makes you thirsty
Following a low-sodium diet
A low-sodium diet combined with medicine can control high blood pressure. Eating less sodium helps blood pressure medicines
control your blood pressure better. This may mean you need less medicine to keep your blood pressure low.
Here are some tips on eating a low-sodium diet without giving up flavour in your food.
The salt in most recipes can be cut in half or removed without changing the food
Salt adds flovour to food but so do a lot of other things. To replace the flavour of salt, try other seasonings and flavourings
such as herbs, spices, pepper, garlic, or lemon juice. If you are used to cooking with lots of salt, gradually decrease the
amount until you are used to the taste without it. Use only small amounts of ketchup, plum sauce, soy sauce, steak sauce and
other sauces because they contain a lot of sodium.
Do not add salt to food after it has been prepared
Keep the salt shaker off the table.
Avoid processed and salty foods
Choose foods you make yourself from fresh ingredients. Lower the number of instant or processed foods you eat, for example,
Kraft dinner, canned soups, TV dinners and other instant foods.
You do not need to eat special “diet” foods
Just try to eat foods with less salt and less sodium.
Read food labels to find out how salty a food is
Reading food labels is a great way to help make sure you do not eat too much salt. The salt content of food is labeled in
milligrams (mg) of sodium per serving.
Sodium per serving
All food labels show the exact amount of sodium in a product. Choose products that have less than 200 milligrams (mg) of sodium per serving. For a whole meal, for example 3 different foods on the same plate, the sodium content should be less than 600 mg per meal.
The total amount of sodium your child can eat in a day depends on his condition and his age. Ask the dietitian how much sodium
your child can have per day.
Write down how much sodium your child can have per day here:
Your dietitian recommends mg of sodium per day.
REMEMBER: 1 teaspoon of salt has almost 2400 mg of sodium. One pinch of salt has about 150 mg of sodium.
Ingredient list
Ingredients are listed in order of weight, from the largest to the smallest. Look for words that mean a food is salty. These
words include:
-
Sodium or salt
-
Garlic salt, onion salt, celery salt
-
Brine
-
Broth
-
Soy sauce
-
Monosodium glutamate (MSG)
-
Baking powder, baking soda
-
Disodium phosphate or sodium bisulfate
-
Sodium alginate, sodium benzoate, sodium hydroxide, sodium propionate
If one of these words is listed near the beginning of the list of ingredients or several are included on the list, then the
food is too salty for your child to eat.
Special words to look for
Foods labelled as “salt free”, "sodium free" or “no salt” are very low in sodium, typically less than 5 mg per serving.
Food labelled as "low in sodium" or "low salt" are low in sodium, typically less than 140 mg per serving.
Food labelled as "reduced in sodium", "lower in salt" or "lightly salted" are lower in salt than the regular product. But these food are not necessarily good for a low sodium diet. Read the food label to check
the amount of sodium per serving to see if it is low in sodium.
Foods labelled "no added salt" or "unsalted" can be high or low in sodium. This means no extra salt was added to the product
during preparation but the food could have been salty to start with. Read the food label to check the amount of sodium per
serving to see if it is low in sodium.
The words "cured," "corned," "pickled," and "smoked" also mean that a food is too salty.
More sodium-reducing tips
Use salt substitutes
There are several types of salt substitutes you can buy. These include Half Salt and No Salt. They contain less sodium, or
potassium instead of sodium. IF YOU ARE ON A LOW POTASSIUM DIET, YOU SHOULD NOT USE SALT SUBSTITUTES
Some cough medicines, laxatives, pain relievers, and alkalizers (seltzers or bicarbonate of soda) are high in sodium
Check with your pharmacist or doctor about using any of these medicines.
Drinking water that has been softened in your home usually contains too much sodium
If you have a water softener at home, contact the company that installed it. Find out how much sodium is in your system. If
not all your taps have been connected, take drinking water from one that is not connected to the water softener system.
Eating out and reducing sodium
Here are some tips you can use to get less sodium when you eat out.
Read the menu
Look for words that are a sign of lots of sodium, such as: "marinated," "pickled," "smoked," "soy sauce," "teriyaki sauce,"
or “in broth.” Try not to eat these foods.
Ask the waiter for help
You can ask the chef not to add salt to your portion. You can also ask for sauces and gravies, which often have lots of salt,
on the side so that you can use less of it. Use only small amount of ketchup, mustard, relish, and other sauces and condiments.
Fast foods: choose less salty items
Most of the foods at fast food restaurants are very salty. Avoid fast food when you can. Try to eat home prepared meals using fresh ingredients instead. When eating fast food, use these tips:
-
Hamburgers: Avoid cheese, special sauces, pickles, and bacon. Limit the condiments you add to the burger.
-
French fries: Ask for French fries straight from the fryer, before salt is added.
-
Pizza: Choose ground beef instead of pepperoni, bacon, sausage, or anchovies. Choose onions, pineapple, mushrooms, or green
peppers instead of olives.
-
Chicken: Roasted, broiled, or grilled chicken are better choices than breaded or fried chicken -- including chicken nuggets
and fingers. Limit the amount of dipping sauce you use.
-
Chinese food: Find a restaurant that does not use MSG. Choose dishes without soy or teriyaki sauce. Do not add soy sauce.
Salty foods to avoid and better foods to choose instead
For a list of low-sodium foods, please see "Low-Sodium Diet: Food Choices."
Your dietitian also recommends these other foods:
For more information
If you have other questions, please speak to your dietitian.
Write down your dietitian's name here:
Write down your dietitian's phone number here:
If you are not sure if a food is salty, do not eat it until you check with your dietitian.
Back to Top>
