Salt is one of themmost popular spicesabsolutely. But nutrition experts repeatedly warn that excessive salt consumption could have negative consequences. Too much salt is said to have a negative effect on metabolism and increase blood pressure. The question is being asked more and more often: How much salt is healthy and when does it become too much? A low-salt diet or a low-salt diet can have a lot of effect in patients with cardiovascular diseases and in people with obesity. But even healthy people are increasingly eating a low-salt or even salt-free diet. A diet is considered low-salt if the daily salt intake is between 1.4g and 6g (for adults!).
We take a closer look at the question and try to find out when a low-salt diet is good for the body and when it is dangerous.
Contents:
- Low-salt diet: How much salt do we need to consume every day? Recommended daily requirement
- When is a low-salt diet necessary: heart and kidney failure and high blood pressure. Grocery list.
- Low-salt diet in healthy people: healthy or dangerous?
- Low-salt diet in children.
- Eating low in salt or completely saltless: which is better?
- Eating Low Salt and Losing Weight: A Grocery List
- A low-salt diet: recipes
Low-salt diet: How much salt do we need to consume every day?
The German Nutrition Society recommends limiting your daily consumption of salt to 6 g. For children between 1 and 3 years of age, the consumer advice center recommends a maximum daily salt consumption of 2 grams. For children between 4 and 6 years of age, daily consumption should not exceed 3 grams; in the 7 to 10 year age group it is 5 grams. From 11 years of age can Children, like adults, consume a maximum of 6 grams per day with food. In reality, Germans eat on average almost twice as much. We don't even notice it. The majority of people who eat too much salt every day get it from foods such as bread, cheese or sausages. If dinner is properly seasoned again, consumption increases even further.
Test: This is how you can tell whether you should eat less salt
Ask yourself several questions. If you answer “yes” to two or three, then that suggests you may be eating too much salt.
1. Are you always thirsty?If you consume too much salt, you will drink twice as much water as usual. The reason: Salt removes water from our body cells, which triggers a chemical reaction in the brain. It quickly sends signals that we should drink more water to replenish our body's cells with water.
2. Do the dishes taste better to you?when you add salt to them? This could be due to the taste buds. There are taste buds on our tongue that provide our brain with important information about the food we eat. When you consume more salt, these taste buds react and send signals. However, if we gradually eat salty sausages, instant soups and other salty products, they slowly get used to it. So it's no wonder that we suddenly don't like the food in the restaurant or at our parents' house if we don't add extra salt to it. The good news: If you switch to a low-salt diet, your taste will adjust again after about 14 days and you will also enjoy low-salt food.
3.Do you often suffer from headaches?, for which your doctor cannot find a medical reason? Anyone who consumes too much salt in their diet every day runs the risk of the blood veins in their head dilating. This is one of the most common causes of headaches.
4. Wrong diet is one of the causesfor flatulence. If you suffer from this, you can also discuss your diet with your family doctor.
5.Do you often have swollen joints?on your feet? One possible cause is the water retention our bodies accumulate as a result of increased salt consumption.
6. Feel more often than usualan urge to urinate?
A low-salt diet is often prescribed in the hospital. A low-salt diet can also be helpful for patients with certain complaints that are being treated at home and can support medication therapy. According to the WHO, reducing salt intake can prevent around 2.5 million deaths annually. We list the three most common reasons why a low-salt diet is prescribed. These include kidney failure, heart failure and high blood pressure.
Low-salt diet for kidney failure
Many doctors consider a low-salt diet to be an important adjunctive therapy for any kidney disease. Consuming more than 6 grams of salt daily increases the amount of sodium in our body. As a result, the blood vessels constrict and this increases blood pressure. If the problem is not treated, it can cause kidney disease. In the worst case, it becomes chronic and the kidneys become damaged over time. Other researchers claim that high blood pressure is not a trigger, but the result of kidney disease. Therefore, patients with high blood pressure have their kidney function checked several times a year and patients with kidney problems have their blood pressure measured daily.
Here is an overview of the basic principles of nutrition for kidney failure:
1. A low-protein diet. Proteins contain nitrogen, which is converted into urea in the human body and then transported through the blood. Doctors try to keep urea in human blood to a minimum. In the case of kidney failure, proteins of animal origin are avoided and plant proteins are used instead.
2. The amount to drink can vary greatly depending on the patient and the course of the disease. If the kidneys are not damaged at all or are slightly damaged, the person affected can drink around 2 liters a day. If the course of the disease is advanced, then the amount to drink is calculated using special formulas.
3. Due to high blood pressure and the recommended drinking amount, in most cases it is also necessary to greatly reduce salt consumption. A low-salt diet for kidney failure relies on fresh fruits and seasonal vegetables. Processed foods are always avoided if possible. According to the consumer advice center, bread and pasta provide around a third, sausages up to a fifth and cheese products surprisingly only contain a tenth of the daily salt consumption. Frozen meals are usually real salt bombs. This also applies to chips and salted nuts.
Low-salt diet for high blood pressure
Nationwide, the number of people suffering from hypertension is very high. Over 20 million Germans are affected by this.As hypertensionblood pressure values above 140 / 90 mmHg are referred to. Risk factors include obesity, age, stress and excessive salt consumption. Reports suggest that limiting salt consumption can significantly reduce blood pressure. About half of hypertensive patients feel the positive effects of a low-salt diet. The medication can often be completely replaced with a balanced, low-salt diet. The results of the diet depend on how the person concerned reacts to high salt consumption. People whose excessive salt intake affects their blood pressure are called salt sensitive. For them, the usual medications to lower blood pressure don't work or don't work as well. Researchers from the University of Boston recentlya studycarried out and discovered that kidney disease and a specific nervous system can trigger salt-sensitive high blood pressure. If not treated in time, hypertension can have serious consequences for the blood vessels and heart.
Low-salt diet for heart failure
Heart failure, med. known as heart failure, is onesevere heart disease, in which the heart muscle cannot function properly. This makes it extremely difficult for oxygen to be transported through the body. As a result, the other organs can also fail. Heart failure often leads to water retention. If patients also eat a high-salt diet, even more water accumulates. To prevent this, most doctors combine drug therapy with a low-salt diet.
Low-salt diet for high blood pressure, heart and kidney failure: what can you eat, what should you avoid?
Below we list the foods you should avoid if you have any of the three conditions and explain what you can replace them with:
- Avoid bread, rolls and pastries made from white flour. Substitute: buckwheat rolls, pastries made from whole wheat flour.
- Pasta with whole grain pasta or legumesReplace pasta.
- Replace fries with boiled potatoes.
- Replace peeled rice with wild rice.
- Avoid pickled vegetables and olives, replace with fresh green leafy vegetables and seasonal vegetables.
- Avoid canned fruits and instead opt for fresh, seasonal fruits. Berries are particularly good for the heart.
- Replace salted nuts with unsalted ones.
- Several types of feta and cream cheese are taboo, but quark and yoghurt are permitted.
- Canned meat, smoked and cured fish and meats such as ham are not allowed. What would be good for you, on the other hand, are casseroles with beef or chicken.
- Spices and herbs to flavor dishes: curry, turmeric, vanilla, basil, parsley, sage, dill, rosemary, oregano, fennel, coriander, garden cress, savory.
Low-salt diet: healthy or dangerous? Advantages and consequences
A low-salt diet is not always beneficial. Researchers often suspect that a low-salt diet could also have negative consequences for our health. Especially the combination with onehigh water absorptioneven proves to be dangerous. Because if you drink a lot of water, you not only excrete pollutants, but also flush out important substances that salt contains from your body. This can lead to high blood pressure, particularly in people over 60 years of age.
Is a low-salt diet dangerous then? No, as long as the amount taken daily is still within reasonable limits. There are already studies that indicate that mortality increases with extremely low salt intake. The hormones that our body releases in large quantities are said to be to blame.
Eating low in salt or completely saltless: which is better?
A low-salt diet is not only an option for people who suffer from a chronic illness. Healthy young people are increasingly deciding to significantly reduce their salt consumption. In the USA, people even talk about extreme salt avoidance, where people try to eat salt-free. However, experts advise against this because a low-sodium diet can also have negative consequences for our health. It can be particularly dangerous when athletes or fitness fans switch their diet to salt-free. Because, as already mentioned, the salt provides important minerals as wellTrace element iodine. Anyone who plays sports or works out in the gym every day drinks a lot of water. The water washes away these minerals and deficiencies quickly arise. The trace element iodine is particularly vital. Fortunately, it is not only contained in salt, but also in foods such as legumes and algae. If you also season your dishes with iodized salt, you will replenish your body's reserves through food. It can be dangerous if you want to lose weight and follow a lightning diet. The lightning diets usually rely on a low-calorie, but very one-sided diet. If the food is not salted, it can quickly become dangerous. Even the trendy Himalayan salt can't help because it doesn't contain any iodine.
Low-salt foods
Regardless of whether you are preparing dishes or topping rolls: it is important that you always keep an overview of the salt content in the food. The consumer advice center points out that we should pay attention to this when shopping. The amount of salt contained in g per 100 g is stated on the packaging of all foods. If it is higher than 1.5 g per 100 g of product, then you should portion the food and consume the portions over several days. If the packaging says 0.3 g to 1.5 g of salt per 100 g of food, then you should make the rest of your daily menu as low in salt as possible. With values up to 0.3 g per 100 g of food, the food is considered low in salt and you can enjoy it.
And if you can't do without cheese and pasta, you can opt for the following low-salt alternatives:
- Emmentaler contains only 0.9 g of salt per 100 g
- Mozzarella is also low in salt at 0.5 g per 100 g
- Puff pastry contains only 0.5g per 100g of product
- Tortellini and spaghetti are both low-salt alternatives to Maultaschen at 0.6 g and 0.3 g per 100 g
- Turkey breast contains only 0.04g of salt per 100g
- Roasted but unsalted nuts contain only 0.01 g of salt.
Low-salt foods: shopping list
We provide you with a shopping list for your orientation. These are the low-salt foods you can find in the supermarket. The salt content variesby type of breadand manufacturer. We only offer you guide values for each food. So when purchasing, check what is written on the package. You can usually find low-salt foods at most organic stores.
- Wholemeal bread 1.28 g per 100 g
- Mehrkornbrot 1, 36 g pro 100 g
- Pumpernickel 1,34 g pro 100 g
- Brown rice 0.025 g per 100 g
- Oat flakes 0.02 g per 100 g
- Erdamame beans 1.3 g per 100 g (fresh and not canned)
- Fluctuations in salt content are possible in poultry, fish and meat
- Chicken 0.01g per 100g
- Pute 0,01 g pro 100 g
- Between 0.01 g and 100 g
- Salmon 0.12g per 100g
- Beef 0.96g per 100g
- Soy milk 0.14 g per 100 g
- Butter, unsalted 0 g per 100 g
- Yoghurt, low fat 0 g per 100 g
- Owner 0.16 gg per 100 g
- Nuts, unsalted 0.05 g per 100 g
- Balsamic 0 g per 100 g
- Vinegar 0g per 100g
- Lemon juice, freshly squeezed 0 g per 100 g
- Apples 0g per 100g
- Spargel 0 g pro 100 g
- Avocados 0,04 g pro 100 g
- Bananas 0g per 100g
- Berries 0 g per 100 g
- Broccoli 0.08 g per 100 g
- Karotten 0.17 g pro 100 g
- Cucumbers, peeled 0 g per 100 g
- Iceberg lettuce 0.02 g per 100 g
- Pilze 0,01 g pro 100 g
- Zwiebel 0.01 g pro 100 g
- Paprika, rot 0 g pro 100 g
- Tomaten 0.02 g pro 100 g
Does a low-salt diet make sense for children?
A low-salt diet is very useful not only for adults, but especially for children. Toddlers and babies can also suffer from high blood pressure if they consume too much salt. The salt can also damage young children's kidneys. While the kidneys of adults can filter the ingested salt and the minerals it contains from the body, they are not fully developed in young children and cannot eliminate the toxins. Therefore, salt poisoning can quickly occur if the amount of salt the little ones consume is very high. The amount of salt that promotes health is not only related to age, but above all to body weight. Since babies and small children weigh significantly less than adults, they are sensitive to just 1 teaspoon of salt. Salt poisoning becomes life-threatening when it causes swelling in the brain. Parents should therefore salt the dishes as sparingly as possible and always pay attention to the salt content of snacks such as pretzel sticks, chips and nuts. Apple chips, roasted nuts without salt and bread without salt are suitable alternatives. Basically:
- For babies and children under 2 years of age, cook without salt and use as little or no seasoning as possible.
- From the age of two, certain spices can be added to food. These include, among others, basil, garlic and parsley. In the third year of life, you can season the dishes very sparingly with paprika and pepper.
- From the age of four, other spices can also be added to the menu. However, you should not use a ready-made spice mixture when cooking, but use a maximum of 2-3 spices per dish.
Low-salt cooking: the basic principles
Would you like to learn how to cook with low salt? There are several basic rules that make the hobby chef's job much easier. Just stick to it if you want to gradually reduce the amount of salt in your food.
- Vegetables and meat taste better when steamed or grilled with little fat. The cooking oil will also add additional flavor to the grilled food.
- It is better to salt with a seasoning salt. That means it's better to mix spices with very little salt.
- Do not add salt to finished dishes. You have prepared a delicious meal, now you are lacking salt and the food suddenly doesn't taste as good. Still, try to avoid salt. After several weeks of getting used to it, you will no longer want to add more salt.
- Iodized salt instead of Himalayan salt. Use salt with iodine content, not Himalayan salt.
Low-salt diet: Lose weight with a low-salt diet
It has been clear for many years that a low-salt diet is beneficial to health. But healthy people can also benefit from it. Because if you eat a low-salt diet, you can quickly lose weight on your stomach. How is that possible? A low-salt diet reduces the amount of sodium. Sodium influences metabolism and can promote the storage of fat on the stomach. That's why nutrition experts recommend that we eat a low-salt diet. Below we offer you several recipes for a low-salt diet.
Low-salt diet: recipes and ideas for delicious and simple dishes
Grilled chicken fillet with basil and tomatoes
Ingredients:
- 200 ml Balsamic
- a handful of basil, fresh and chopped
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 garlic clove, pressed
- eight cherry tomatoes
- 200 g chicken fillet, skinned
Preparation: Prepare the marinade from the balsamic vinegar, basil, olive oil and garlic clove. To do this, simply put all the ingredients in a bowl and puree them finely. Wash and halve the tomatoes. Place the chicken fillet in a bowl and pour the marinade over it. Place in the refrigerator for an hour. Then remove the chicken fillet from the marinade, drain and grill at 165 degrees Celsius, about 6 minutes on each side. Grill the tomatoes for 3 minutes, turn over and grill for another 3 minutes. In the meantime, put the marinade in a pot, bring to the boil and simmer over low heat for about half an hour. Add water if necessary.
Salinity: 0.171 g salt
Tilapia fillet with mushrooms
Ingredients:
- 200 g Tilapia- Filet
- 1 teaspoon butter, unsalted
- 200 g mushrooms, cleaned and washed
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 medium bell pepper, chopped
- pepper to taste
- Paprika powder to taste
- a pinch of cayenne pepper
- 1 tomato, washed, peeled and chopped
- a handful of young onions, chopped finely
Preparation: Place the fish fillet in a pan, drizzle with olive oil and fry for 3 minutes on each side. Then add the mushrooms, pepper, tomato and spring onion and simmer the dish for another 5 minutes over medium heat.
Salinity: 0.173 g
Whole grain pizza with vegetables
Ingredients:
- 200g wholemeal flour and 50g all-purpose flour
- 2 packs of baking soda
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup of water
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 2 tsp spice mix (without salt), Italian
- 1 tbsp basil, fresh, chopped
- 1/2 TL Pfeffer
For the receipt:
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 zucchini, chopped into small pieces
- 200 g mushrooms, washed and chopped
- 1 pepper, finely chopped
- 1 onion, chopped small
- a handful of mozzarella
For the sauce:
- Cherry tomatoes, chopped
- 1 teaspoon parsley, fresh and chopped
- 1/2 tsp sugar
Preparation: Put the first four ingredients for the pizza dough in a bowl and mix well. Put water and olive oil in a pot and heat to 130 degrees Celsius. Then add the water and olive oil to the dry ingredients and knead with a hand mixer for three minutes. Then knead the dough by hand on a floured surface for another 5 minutes. Place in a bowl, cover with a cloth and let rise for 30 minutes. In the meantime, combine the ingredients for the sauce in a small pan and bring to the boil. Then reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce thickens. Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees Celsius. Divide the dough in half and roll each half out in a circle on a pizza peel and place on the pizza stone. Bake for 10 minutes until the edges are brown. In the meantime, sauté the vegetables for the topping in a pan. Take the pizza out of the oven, spread the sauce on top and top with the vegetables. Bake until the cheese melts.
Salinity: 0.234 g
Important
Any methods, information, and tips in this article are based on current studies and medical sources (at the time of publication). However, they are not suitable for self-diagnosis and treatment and in no way serve as a substitute for competent medical advice.
The nutritional method described is safe for many people, but not for everyone. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or have a medical condition, talk to your doctor before starting.
