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More low-fat and no-fat products are popping up in the grocery shelves every day. Manufacturers are introducing them because of the obesity problem in the United States and many other developed countries around the world.
However, when fat is taken out, much of the flavor is also taken out of these low-fat and no-fat foods.
To compensate for the lowered flavor, these same food manufacturers are adding extra salt to reclaim the food’s flavor.
So, be aware that many foods that are low in fat should probably be labeled “low-fat and high-salt.”
According to the Monday, December 1, 2008 Reuters’ article Salt lurks in bagels, cereal, report finds, “Harmful amounts of sodium can be found in unsalty foods such as breakfast cereal and bagels, according to Consumer Reports magazine.”
The CR researchers analyzed 37 different food products.
Page two lists some of these foods, and the amount of sodium each contains.
Among the products surveyed, they found that:
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• one cup of Kellogg’s Raisin Bran had 350 milligrams (other raisin bran cereals has between 230 and 350 milligrams)
• one Pepperidge Farm Whole Grain White Bagel has 440 milligrams
• one-half cup of Prego "Heart Smart Traditional" Italian Sauce contains 430 milligrams
• one serving of “Heart Healthy" V8 vegetable juice has 480 milligrams
• one ounce serving of regular potato chips hads180 milligrams
• McDonald’s Premium Caesar Salad with grilled chicken (without salad dressing) has 890 milligrams
• McDonald’s fries has 350 milligrams
• Aunt Jemima Original Pancake and Waffle Mix has 200 milligrams (per pancake)
• A leading maple and brown sugar flavored instant oatmeal has over three times more sodium that its original flavored oatmeal.
The U.S. National Academies’ Institute of Medicine recommends that most adults should consume no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day. This guideline amount is about one teaspoon of table salt.
For people with high blood pressure (a systolic blood pressure over 120 millimeters of mercury (mm/Hg) or a diastolic pressure over 80 mm/Hg), people over 60 years of age, and those with chronic diseases such as kidney disease or diabetes, the NA Institute of Medicine recommends less than 1,500 milligrams.
Jamie Hirsh, an associate health editor for Consumer Reports magazine, stated, “Our analysis found that lower-fat products might be higher in sodium. That's in part because when fat is taken out of full-fat foods, sodium is sometimes used to compensate for flavor.” [EmedicineHealth.com: “Fast Food and Frozen Dinners Are Often High in Sodium, but Pancake Mix and Bagels, Too?”]
Hirsh added, "One of the big surprises is that foods that you would think would be really salty, like salted nuts, have less sodium than many processed or packaged foods that don't taste salty at all."
The Consumer Reports article was released on Monday, December 1, 2008.
Page three lists some types of salt that appear on labels.
Consumer Reports also stated that sodium appears in foods in other forms than just sodium chloride (table salt).
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• disodium guanylate
• disodium inosinate
• sodium caseinate
• sodium benzoate
• sodium bicarbonate
• sodium nitrite.
Three ways to reduce salt intake is to (1) not shake salt onto foods, (2) prepare your own food and not to use prepackaged, highly processed foods, and (3) read the labels on all food packages before buying them.
Even though highly processed foods are convenient to prepare, there seems to be little about them that is healthy for consumers.
Most of the time they are filled with artifical ingredients, dyes, and now a high amount of salt.
It really is necessary to read all food labels before buying any food product.
Food manufacturers are not always looking after your health, even though they sometimes try to imply that with their labeling and advertising. Only you and your doctor are doing that.
Don't assume anything when it comes to the foods you eat. They may not be as healthy as you think!
