Low Sodium Diet Menus

Low sodium diet menus can help prevent a variety of health issues. Sodium is essential to the body in small amounts; however, too much sodium can lead to many health problems including increased blood pressure. The Center for Disease Control recommends eating 2,300 mg of sodium per day for the average adult and no more than 1,500 mg of sodium per day for those with high blood pressure, people 40 or older, and African-Americans.

Cutting

Cutting sodium is not that difficult and the first step is understanding how to read the nutrition label. Always check the back of the food package for the sodium amount per serving. Many processed foods are loaded with added sodium. In fact, 77 percent of the sodium the average person eats comes from added sodium in processed foods. One of the easiest ways to cut sodium is to eat less processed and prepared foods and prepared your own fresh, whole foods. Choose whole grains carbs and plenty of fruits and vegetables. If you eat canned vegetables and other products that have added sodium, always rinse them before eating. Choose lean meats that have not been processed and avoid the salty deli counter meats and cheeses. Cook your own soup using low sodium broths. Rather than adding salt to food, use salt-free herbs and spices to add flavoring. Always look for reduced sodium and sodium free products over their high sodium counterparts.

Foods

When creating a low sodium diet menu, pick from the following list of foods and you will save a ton of sodium with each meal:

Breakfast:
Eggs
Fruits (i.e., apples, bananas, berries)
Veggies
Oatmeal

Lunch:
Tuna (fresh, not canned)
Salmon (fresh, not canned)
Chicken breast (not from deli)
Turkey breast (not from deli)
Reduced sodium Swiss cheese
Veggies (i.e., carrots, lettuce, cucumbers)

Dinner:
Chicken
Turkey
Fish
Vegetables (i.e., sweet potato, lettuce, broccoli)
Sodium free pasta sauce
Beans with no salt added

Low Sodium Diet Menu

Here is a healthy and delicious low sodium diet menu that contains only 1,700 calories and 631 grams of sodium (all calculations were taken from The Daily Plate):

Breakfast:
2 eggs
1 cup oatmeal
1 banana

Lunch:
1 cup romaine lettuce
4 oz. chicken breast
1 oz. Swiss cheese
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup brown rice

Snack 1:
1 Sargento Light string cheese

Dinner:
4 oz. salmon
1 cup broccoli
1 cup romaine lettuce
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 cup no salt added black beans

Snack 2:
1 cup baby carrots