Is It Possible To Become Salt-Free?

Everybody is talking about reducing salt-intake because excessive salt presented in our bodies may subsequently brings us hypertension (high blood pressure), kidney problem, and many other diseases. And of course, hypertension is also a risk factor for heart disease.

But how many of us can actually accomplish it? This is mainly because we always think that food without or even with reduced salt will surely taste awful or tasteless. Hopefully the following real-life story would show some ways and also convince you to cut down the salt intake!

Through a friend of mine, I recently got to know a microbiologist who had tried out food without salt few years ago. She still maintains the way she prepares her food and the experience she shared with us is:

"Food tastes just as great as the normal with salt."

A few years ago, she decided to flush excess sodium out of her body. But she did this with a reason behind: "She was asked to analyze her own diet as part of her studies in nutrition leading to a degree in nutritional medicine."

Initially, she purposely raise the salt intake by half teaspoon, in additional to the recommended 1 teaspoon of salt a day for adults. This is equivalent to the salt contents of most fast-food meals.

Having a family tendency towards hypertension, she noticed that she had fluid retention making her fingers swell, a symptom showing that too much salt was in her diet. Moreover, her skin tended to stay mostly sweat-free even during exercise. She knew she was having too much fluid in her body so as to dilute the excessive sodium.

She then created a nutritional program for herself to cut down the salt levels while increasing levels of potassium, a mineral that can offset some of the effects of sodium overload.

Processed foods were the first lined up in her list that had to go as it accounts for as much as 75 percent of all consumed salt. She also cut down on foods like canned soups, cheese, and cured meats. She started cooking without the help of ready-made sauces and spice pastes. Even ready-to-eat cereals, which can have surprisingly high levels of salt embedded, were replaced by alternatives like oats.

Her basic diet was based around fresh whole-foods that tends to be naturally low in sodium and high in potassium. In order to boost her potassium and other minerals levels, she made an effort to take fresh juice daily.

Salt is an "acquired taste", so it should not be a problem to gradually stay away from it while cooking. But when there is circumstance when salt is necessary, for example, some dishes like soups need that little salt to enhance flavors, she will still add salt. However, she will stick to good-quality sea salt that has some useful minerals like zinc and potassium.

She uses spices and herbs such as coriander leaves, cumin seeds and ginger that are also rich in potassium to replace salt and enhance the taste of foods. She also discovers that fresh lemon juice, yogurt, tomatoes, and chilli can effectively lessen the need for salt

Cutting down salt intake has also brought big change on her taste buds. While it is inarguable that a little salt does bring out the flavor in food, too much of it has a blinding effect. Without the excessive amount of salt, she finds her palate cleaner, and better able to enjoy the intrinsic flavors in food.

Trying to be strict at home is not very difficult, but when she dines out, it is not easy to be as careful. Anyway, she will try to avoid heavy, prepared sauces and gravies that are usually salty and may even contain MSG. Soups can be great, nutritionally speaking, but she avoids them unless she is sure of how they are prepared. She imagine that if she wasn't careful enough, it would be possible for her to tuck in double, maybe even triple, the amount of salt than what is healthy.

On the occasion that she takes too much salt or MSG, within the hour, her body protests: she is left choking with thirst and feel exhausted. Sometimes, she finds it even aggravates her sinusitis.

Copyright 2007-2012 © HowToPreventHeartDisease.com. All Rights Reserved.
Created by EpublishingVault.com
Heart Disease Prevention - 8 Simple Ways You Can Do Immediately