Dietary Sodium and Blood Pressure

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Dietary Sodium and Blood Pressure
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• Hypertension
• The Silent Killer
• Sodium
• The Quiet Food Additive

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Outline

• Sodium
• Where do we get it?
• What does it do?
• How is it a health risk?
• Sodium and hypertension
• Recommended sodium restriction
• How to reduce your sodium intake
• Meal makeovers

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Where do we get sodium?

• Salt
• Table salt, sea salt, seasoning salts
• Sodium additives
• Eg. MSG
• Processed foods

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What does sodium do?

• In food
• Prevents food from spoiling.
• Performs many different functions in processed
  foods.
• Adds flavour.

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What does sodium do?

• In your body
• Helps regulate your bodys fluid balance.
• Too much sodium can increase the amount of water
  or fluid held in your body.
• Excess fluid puts extra pressure on your blood
  vessels causing damage.

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How is sodium a health risk?

• Increases the risk of hypertension (high blood
  pressure).
• Hypertension increases risk for
• Stroke
• Heart attack
• Kidney disease
• Dementia

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Dietary Changes Can Lower Blood Pressure and Risk

• Eating a low sodium, well balanced diet is as
  effective as taking a blood pressure medication.
• 1 in 3 Canadians with hypertension could have
  normal blood pressure if they lowered their
  sodium intake.
• Following a low-sodium diet could reduce the risk
  of heart attack or stroke by 25-30.

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Sodium restriction is especially important

• For those people
• Of African descent
• Over 45 years of age
• With high blood
• pressure

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Adequate Sodium Intake For Adults
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Recommended Sodium Restriction

• 2300 mg per day or less

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Sodium Intake of Canadian Adults
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Why is our sodium intake so high?

• Busy lifestyle!
• Want convenience
• Less home-cooked
• meals

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Bigger Portions
21 cups
3 cups
The more we eat, the more sodium we consume.
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Increased Use Of Condiments

• Ketchup
• Mustard
• Soy sauce
• Salad dressing
• Relish and pickles
• Olives
• Sauces

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More Processed Foods
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Sources Of Sodium
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Processing Adds Sodium To Food
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Sodium Content of Restaurant Foods
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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Choose fresh, unprocessed foods.
• Gradually decrease the amount of salt used in
  cooking and at the table (this includes sea
  salt).
• Use condiments sparingly.

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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Flavour food with lemon juice, fresh garlic,
  spices, herbs and flavoured vinegars.
• Try low-sodium seasoning mixes.
• Use oil, rather than butter or margarine for
  cooking.

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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Limit instant foods.
• Buy pre-prepared foods that are low in sodium
  such as frozen vegetables and pre-cut salad.
• Plan meals at least a day in advance. Find quick
  meal ideas in cookbooks and on-line.

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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Read food labels.
• Look for the words sodium or salt in
  ingredient lists.
• Look for foods labelled salt-free, no added
  salt, low in sodium, or reduced in sodium.

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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Check the Nutrition Facts Table for
• The mg sodium per serving
• (the lower, the better)
• The Daily Value
• (aim for 10 or less)

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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Limit how often you eat in restaurants.
• Restrict fast foods and take-out meals.
• Look for unsalted snack foods such as chips,
  pretzels, nuts, seeds and crackers.

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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Vegetables and Fruit
• Choose fresh or frozen vegetables.
• Limit vegetables with sauce.
• Try making homemade salad dressing, or use
  commercial dressings sparingly.
• Enjoy fresh, frozen, canned or dried fruit.

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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Grain Products
• Limit packaged pastas and rice with powdered
  sauce or seasoning.
• Use quick-cooking, rather than instant oatmeal.
• Look for low-sodium soups.
• Choose breads, crackers and baked goods with the
  lower mg sodium per serving.

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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Milk and Alternatives
• Choose lower fat milk and yogurt.
• Be aware of higher sodium content of instant
  puddings, hot chocolate and flavoured coffee
  mixes.
• Limit all cheese, especially processed cheese
  slices or spreads.

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Reduce Your Sodium Intake

• Meat and Alternatives
• Limit processed, cured, smoked or breaded meats
  and poultry.
• Choose fresh, frozen or low-sodium canned fish.
• Rinse canned lentils, chick peas or beans, or
  cook your own.
• Enjoy unsalted nuts and seeds.

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Breakfast Menu Makeover
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Lunch Menu Makeover
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Snack Menu Makeover
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Dinner Menu Makeover
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Sodium Comparison

• High sodium menu 5157 mg
• Lower sodium menu 1110 mg

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The Sodium Challenge

• There is no satisfactory sodium substitute.
• The food industry needs to gradually lower
  sodium/salt content of foods.
• Companies are starting to reduce the sodium
  content of their products.

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Dietary Advice for Lowering Your Blood Pressure

• Aim for a sodium intake of less than 2300 mg a
  day.
• Eat well according to Canadas Food Guide.

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Dietary Sodium Questions

• 1. Reducing your intake of salt or sodium may
  help you prevent high blood pressure.
• TRUE
• FALSE

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Dietary Sodium Question

• 2.Your blood pressure may be more sensitive to
  the effects of sodium if you are over 45 years
  old.
• TRUE
• FALSE

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Dietary Sodium Questions

• 3. Most of the sodium consumed by Canadians is
  from salt added at the table.
• TRUE
• FALSE

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Dietary Sodium Questions

• 4. You should aim to eat less than 2300 mg of
  sodium a day.
• TRUE
• FALSE

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Dietary Sodium Questions

• 5. The Nutrition Facts table tells you the number
  of milligrams (mg) of sodium in the whole package
  of food.
• TRUE
• FALSE

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Dietary Sodium Questions

• 6. Instant packaged foods and fast food
  restaurant meals generally have a very high
  sodium content.
• TRUE
• FALSE

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For More Information

• Go to www.hypertension.ca
• Click on Public
• Then click on Lifestyle Choices

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For Low-Sodium Cooking Suggestions and Recipes

• Go to
• www.dialadietitian.org
• www.calgaryhealthregion.ca