Experts recommend lowering your salt intake if you want to improve your blood pressure, but how much salt is too much? Let’s find out.
Salt is an excellent source of sodium and is available in many foods and beverages, but too much can increase your blood pressure, heart disease risk, and more. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), table salt is made up of 40% sodium.
The amount of salt you need will vary by age and health condition. Most guidelines provide measurements for sodium, not salt intake. For example, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides the following guidelines regarding maximum sodium intake per day according to age. The listed amounts refer to sodium per day in grams (g):
- Age: 1-3: 1.5 g of sodium
- Age: 4-8: 1.9 g
- Age: 9-13: 2.2 g
- Age: 14+: 2.3 g
The AHA also notes that people only require about 0.5 g of sodium per day to function well. According to their guidelines, people will ideally limit their intake to 1.5 g of sodium (3.74 g of salt) per day or less. However, Americans consume more than 3.4 g of sodium (8.5 g of salt) daily on average. Moreover, 70% of that sodium comes from pre-packaged and restaurant foods.
Reducing Your Salt
If you want a healthy heart, you need to manage how much salt and sodium you consume. Fortunately, there are simple things you can do to reduce your salt intake. For instance, you can check the nutrition labels at the grocery store and buy products with lower sodium values.
You can also buy frozen or canned vegetables that have no added salt and no salty sauces included. But if you want to be sure, you can drain and rinse your canned goods, whether they’re vegetables or beans.
If you’re used to using salt while cooking, choose salt substitutes or herbs and spices instead. If you’re at a restaurant, choose steamed, baked, roasted, or grilled meals and limit your portion sizes at home and at restaurants. Replace salty snacks like chips with healthier options like vegetables or fruits. If you want to avoid the short-term and long-term complications of consuming too much salt, then take action now.
A Healthy Heart
Diet plays a central role in your blood pressure and heart health. Consuming too much salt can lead to excessive thirst, high blood pressure, kidney disease, heart failure, stroke, and more. For these reasons, it’s essential that you start managing your salt intake sooner rather than later.
In addition, you can give your heart an extra boost by taking HeartBeet Complete. As a heart health supplement, it promotes circulation, blood pressure health, energy levels, and more. If you’re ready to support your health, then start reducing your sodium and start taking HeartBeet Complete.
