Low-salt diet: for whom, how and why?
updated the 17 August 2015 à 11:26Salt often compliments our meal, but not too much of it. Here’s all you need to know about the ‘low salt’ diet.
The goal: To normalize blood pressure and prevent premature aging of the cardiovascular system.
Does it work? Studies clearly show that diets which are low in salt are always accompanied by a decrease in blood pressure.
For whom? The ‘no salt’ diet is strictly prescribed to patients with kidney or heart diseases (heart failure). But sick or not, eating less salt is good for preventing hypertension. We consume about 8.5g of salt per day, and our bodies require 5g maximum. Although there is no life-threatening risk in that, practicing moderation throughout our life is better for the health.
In practice: The strict salt-free diet requires a specific prescription with a professional monitoring and removing of numerous foods (cold cuts, cheeses, smoked meats and fish, canned, pre-cooked dishes) including those with alleviated salt.
Healthy options would be low-sodium deli meats (-25%), low sodium cheeses (<120 mg per 100g) and other low sodium products sold on the Internet or special nutrition shops. Buying low-salt products is good, but it is much better to start by avoiding salt without tasting (remove the salt shaker from the table), limiting salt in cooking and reducing the consumption of products containing too much salt – according to the dietitian Frédérique Lemoine – first and foremost chips, crackers, soups, cheese, canned and pre-cooked meals and carbonated salt water. Also beware of breakfast cereals, biscuits and bakery products (one baguette alone contains 4g of salt). As an example, a small bag of salt, such as those distributed in fast food restaurants, contains 1g.
Expert opinion: Dr. Jean-Michel Lecerf:
‘Eating less salt is good for everyone, but not enough when you are hypertensive. Weight loss is necessary and so is a reduction in the consumption of alcohol, and in some cases treatment. Finally, it is not enough to take a drug if you’re suffering from high blood pressure; you also need to let go of salt’.
More from our special DIETS series:
Stephen Rica
