Our love of salt puts us at risk for high blood pressure, other health problems

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A high-salt diet has long been linked to higher odds of developing high blood pressure and heart disease as well as an increased risk of heart attack, stroke and heart failure.

But there is still a healthy debate ongoing. It is still worth the effort to reduce your salt intake.

"A lack of salt is a problem as well, but there is a happy medium. What we see is that most Americans have too much salt in their diet. The issue is when we have too much salt in a diet, it makes the body retain too much water, which brings up the blood pressure and blood volume. It causes more strain on the heart, kidneys, and brain," said cardiology specialist.

The average American consumes about 3.5 grams of salt a day. Cardiology specialist says most of this comes from the highly processed foods that we routinely eat.

"As long as we are buying processed foods, canned foods, that's where most of it comes from. We are going out to restaurants being conscious of these things, and not having any more.  Little things like trying your food to make sure that you can tolerate to making sure you don't add any more. These subtle things can cause a reduction in the amount of salt we take and how this controls our blood pressure easier," said the Dr. 

To lower the risk of heart disease, adults should reduce sodium intake to less than 2 grams a day. 

"Just like some people count calories, or some people track their exercise, doing the same thing and reading the labels is what it comes down to. If you are purchasing processed food, you really need to read the labels or be cognizant of it. Heart disease is the number one killer in America, and strokes are the 5th killer in America. So, it is a big problem overall in society," said the Dr.

More than 70 percent of sodium consumed is from processed and restaurant foods. Only a small portion of sodium or salt is used in cooking or added at the dinner table.

The body needs a small amount of sodium to function, but most Americans consume too much sodium. High sodium consumption can raise blood pressure, and high blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Heart disease and stroke are the nation's first and fifth leading causes of death.

When your kidneys can't eliminate enough sodium in your body, sodium starts to build up in your blood. Because sodium attracts and holds water, your blood volume increases, which makes your heart work harder and increases pressure in your arteries.

Consuming too much salt raises your blood pressure levels.  If you eat too much salt, the extra water stored in your body raises your blood pressure. So, the more salt you eat, the higher your blood pressure.

The higher your blood pressure, the greater the strain on your heart, arteries, kidneys and brain. This can lead to heart attacks, strokes, dementia and kidney disease.
Your body needs some sodium to function properly because it:

• Helps maintain the right balance of fluids in your body
• Helps transmit nerve impulses
• Influences the  contraction and relaxation muscles

How much do you need? 
The dietary guidelines for Americans recommends limiting sodium to less than 2,300 mg a day. 
Reducing Cardiovascular Disease 

• Research suggests that reducing sodium lowers cardiovascular disease and death rates over the long term.
• Sodium reduction continues to be an effective and safe strategy to lower blood pressure.
• Reducing sodium intake lowers blood pressure, with greater effects among people with hypertension.

Sodium Content of Food
Whether you're living with heart failure or not, it's important how much sodium certain foods contain. Here's a quick glance of some more popular foods.
Note: These are ranges. The sodium content in certain food items may vary.

Food	Serving Size	Milligrams Sodium
Bacon	1 medium slice	155
Chicken (dark meat)	3.5 oz roasted	87
Chicken (light meat)	3.5 oz roasted	77
Egg, fried	1 large	162
Egg, scrambled with milk	1 large	171
Dried beans, peas, or lentils	1 cup	4
Haddock	3 oz cooked	74
Halibut	3 oz cooked	59
Ham (roasted)	3.5 oz	1,300 to 1,500
Hamburger (lean)	3.5 oz broiled medium	77
Hot dog, beef	1 medium	585
Peanuts, dry roasted	1 oz	228
Pork loin, roasted	3.5 oz	65
Roast lamb leg	3.5 oz	65
Roast veal leg	3.5 oz	68
Salmon	3 oz	50
Shellfish	3 oz	100 to 325
Shrimp	3 oz	190
Spareribs, braised	3.5 oz	93
Steak, T-bone	3.5 oz	66
Tuna, canned in spring water	3 oz. chunk white	300
Turkey (dark meat)	3.5 oz roasted	76
Turkey (light meat)	3.5 oz roasted	63
Dairy Products
American cheese	1 oz	443
Buttermilk, salt added	1 cup	260
Cheddar cheese	1 oz	175
Cottage cheese, low-fat	1 cup	918
Milk, whole	1 cup	120
Milk, skim or 1%	1 cup	125
Swiss cheese	1 oz	75
Yogurt, plain	1 cup	115
Vegetables and vegetable juices
Asparagus	6 spears	10
Avocado	1/2 medium	10
Beans, white cooked	1 cup	4
Beans, green	1 cup	4
Beets	1 cup	84
Broccoli, raw	1/2 cup	12
Broccoli, cooked	1/2 cup	20
Carrot, raw	1 medium	25
Carrot, cooked	1/2 cup	52
Celery	1 stalk raw	35
Corn (sweet, no butter/salt)	1/2 cup boiled	14
Cucumber	1/2 cup sliced	1
Eggplant, raw	1 cup	2
Eggplant, cooked	1 cup	4
Lettuce	1 leaf	2
Lima beans	1 cup	5
Mushrooms	1/2 cup (raw or cooked)	1 to 2
Mustard greens	1/2 cup chopped	12
Onion, chopped	1/2 cup (raw or cooked)	2 to 3
Peas	1 cup	4
Potato	1 baked	7
Radishes	10	11
Spinach, raw	1/2 cup	22
Spinach, cooked	1/2 cup	63
Squash, acorn	1/2 cup	4
Sweet potato	1 small	12
Tomato	1 medium	11
Tomato juice, canned	3/4 cup	660
Fruits and fruit juices
Apple	1 medium	1
Apple juice	1 cup	7
Apricots	3 medium	1
Apricots (dried)	10 halves	3
Banana	1 medium	1
Cantaloupe	1/2 cup chopped	14
Dates	10 medium	2
Grapes	1 cup	2
Grape juice	1 cup	7
Grapefruit	1/2 medium	0
Grapefruit juice	1 cup	3
Orange	1 medium	1
Orange juice	1 cup	2
Peach	1	0
Prunes (dried)	10	3
Raisins	1/3 cup	6
Strawberries	1 cup	2
Watermelon	1 cup	3
Breads and grains
Bran flakes	3/4 cup	220
Bread, whole wheat	1 slice	159
Bread, white	1 slice	123
Bun, hamburger	1	241
Cooked cereal (instant)	1 packet	250
Corn flakes	1 cup	290
English muffin	1/2	182
Pancake	1 (7-inch round)	431
Rice, white long grain	1 cup	4
Shredded wheat	1 biscuit	0
Spaghetti	1 cup	7
Waffle	1 frozen	235
Convenience foods
Canned soups	1 cup	600 to 1,300
Canned and frozen main dishes	8 oz	500 to 2,570