Shake the Salt Shaker

The main ingredient in salt is sodium. The average Canadian consumes an additional 3100 mg of sodium than recommended each day. The high amount of sodium in our diet leads to high blood pressure which places us at higher risk for stroke and heart disease.

Read the label:

• Aim for foods that contain less than 300 mg of sodium per serving
• Aim to have no more than 2300 mg of sodium per day. This is equivalent to about 1 tsp of table salt.

Nutrient content claims:

"Salt/Sodium Free"  "No Salt" - The food contains less than 5mg of sodium per serving size

"Low in Sodium/Salt" - The food contains less than 140mg of sodium per serving size

"Reduced in Sodium/Salt" "Less Sodium/Salt" - The food is modified so that it contains at least 25% less sodium than original product

"Lower in Sodium/Salt" - The food contains at least 25% less sodium

"No Added Sodium/Salt" - The food contains no added salt/sodium or other ingredients that contain sodium

"Lightly Salted" - The food contains at least 50% less sodium than the original product or reference food

Hidden Sodium:

• Sodium is added during the processing of many foods
• Processed foods including canned soups, canned vegetables and legumes, processed deli meats (hot dogs, sausages, salami style meats, and bacon)
• Pre-packaged foods including ready-to-eat meals and microwavable dinners. These foods can contain up to 50% of the recommended daily amount of sodium in one serving

Tips to reduce your sodium intake:

• Avoid using salt when cooking or at the table
• Use other spices and seasonings to add flavour to food
• Eat more fresh/frozen vegetables and fruit
• Limit the amount of pre-packaged and processed foods eaten