A Pillar Of Salt!
I`ve come to the conclusion that the modern Western diet is built upon a pillar of salt. Once I stumbled upon the Paleo Diet and noticed that I had essentially adopted some of the basic nutritional concepts as part of my ongoing attempts to eat better I realized that salt is everywhere.
Who knew? Yes I was aware that sodium content is listed on nutritional labels but like the proverbial "forest for the trees" I never paid much attention. There was always the total carbs and fat percentages to focus upon.
If anything comes out of my experiment with the Paleo Diet it will be a newfound respect(fear)of processed foods and the substantial amount of sodium hidden within our foodstuffs. I also have developed a new appreciation for herbs and how food can be prepared without salt by using the flavors found in nature.
That said I must draw compromises and find it difficult to completely rule out sodium. There are some staples to my diet that have salt but are at low levels. Canned sardines,herring and tuna all have drained sodium percentages around 10%(of recommended daily total)but offer Omega 3 fatty acids and protein. I also discovered that Sobey`s carries the Lewis Mountain brand of unpasteurized sauerkraut.Comprised of cabbage, salt and spring water it offers the healthy benefits of cabbage and,as a naturally fermented food,it contains beneficial probiotic bacteria.A serving only adds 200mg of sodium or 8% of daily value. Yippee!
To put it in perspective a 796ml can of "homestyle" vegetable soup has(about)a whopping 2280+ mg of salt!That`s 760 mg per 250 ml serving.I have in the past eaten the whole can. Since the daily value of salt is recommended to be 2300 mg/day it`s no wonder most Canadians easily consume 2/3 times the suggested amount of salt.
Thanks Paleo. Had I not investigated the newspaper article I read that morning at work I would still be blind to the hidden dangers of sodium in processed foods.I am so going "au natural" with my nutrition and diet and will be watching the sodium content in all foods.
Who knew? Yes I was aware that sodium content is listed on nutritional labels but like the proverbial "forest for the trees" I never paid much attention. There was always the total carbs and fat percentages to focus upon.
If anything comes out of my experiment with the Paleo Diet it will be a newfound respect(fear)of processed foods and the substantial amount of sodium hidden within our foodstuffs. I also have developed a new appreciation for herbs and how food can be prepared without salt by using the flavors found in nature.
That said I must draw compromises and find it difficult to completely rule out sodium. There are some staples to my diet that have salt but are at low levels. Canned sardines,herring and tuna all have drained sodium percentages around 10%(of recommended daily total)but offer Omega 3 fatty acids and protein. I also discovered that Sobey`s carries the Lewis Mountain brand of unpasteurized sauerkraut.Comprised of cabbage, salt and spring water it offers the healthy benefits of cabbage and,as a naturally fermented food,it contains beneficial probiotic bacteria.A serving only adds 200mg of sodium or 8% of daily value. Yippee!
To put it in perspective a 796ml can of "homestyle" vegetable soup has(about)a whopping 2280+ mg of salt!That`s 760 mg per 250 ml serving.I have in the past eaten the whole can. Since the daily value of salt is recommended to be 2300 mg/day it`s no wonder most Canadians easily consume 2/3 times the suggested amount of salt.
Thanks Paleo. Had I not investigated the newspaper article I read that morning at work I would still be blind to the hidden dangers of sodium in processed foods.I am so going "au natural" with my nutrition and diet and will be watching the sodium content in all foods.
Comments
Carol
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