Question: I eat healthy foods… do I still need to watch the salt?
Answer: Absolutely! Eating healthy doesn’t automatically guarantee low sodium levels. For example, a healthy garden salad topped with a low-fat salad dressing might contain over 1,000mg of sodium, nearly half the recommended daily salt intake of 2,400mg. Plus, the sodium content can vary significantly between different brands of the same type of product.
Other examples and the average range of sodium within brands:
- 1 slice or piece of bread (146mg – 385mg)
- 2 oz luncheon meat (500mg – 986mg)
- 1/4 of a 12″ pizza (cheese, thin and thick crust) (680mg – 1,192mg)
- 4 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast, fresh (40mg – 230mg)
- 3 oz chicken strips, breaded (430mg – 900mg)
- 3 oz chicken nuggets, breaded, frozen (200mg – 570mg)
- 1 cup chicken noodle soup, canned (350mg – 940mg)
- 1 cheeseburger, fast food restaurant (710mg – over 2,000mg)*
- 1 oz slice American cheese (330mg – 460mg)
- 1 cup canned pasta with meat sauce (530mg – 980mg)
- 5 oz pork with barbecue sauce (600mg – 1,120mg)
- 1 oz potato chips, plain (150mg – over 200mg)
*NOTE: An average fast food hamburger patty has 378mg sodium, a slice of cheese 200-300mg, bun adds 200mg, condiments anywhere from 60mg to several hundred, pickles 50-100mg for each slice, and if you add bacon, another 500-600mg.
