This time, Dr. Frieden, commissioner of New York City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has sodium reduction in mind. He is known for his previous conquests on trans fat, smoking, and posting calorie counts on menus. However, salt is going to be harder to fight since all of its effects on health aren’t proven. The only plan we have of a low sodium diet is for health reasons and that is the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet, where you consume foods low in sodium, calorie and fat.
Dr. Frieden’s plan is to reduce the sodium in prepared and packaged foods. He’s expecting that if we reduce sodium little by little, then we can adhere to a low sodium diet for the average person. Sodium is an acquired taste just as spicy foods are to a person, if we can reduce the consumption of it and wean you of it, you most likely can survive on bland tasting foods. This is not an ideal situation we can achieve anytime soon or probably, never.
Mostly because salt is in everything, even if you prevent it from being in processed foods it is still in your daily diet. According to the RDA (Recommended Dietary Allowance), the average person is to consume less than 2,400 mg of sodium a day (1 teaspoon of table salt/day). I think we achieved this teaspoon of sodium consumption by the end of breakfast. The only way the average person can go on a low sodium diet is discipline, health, or they have to completely wipe out all foods rich in sodium, which is mostly everything. Reducing salt in packaged foods can help but we still have a long way to go to achieve the low sodium diet goal. Basically, it is people’s choice to eat what they want, and if they want to be in good health, eat sparingly. A little bit of everything is better for you than a large consumption of everything. It’s as the saying goes “don’t take more on your plate than you can handle”. The same goes with life.
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