How to Help a Salt Addict?

[Ross]

I do the Mrs. Dash thing and Marie, I think it was, brought Tony Cacheres (salty spicey) or Paul Prudhommes seasonings into play. Despite all my problems, my Cardio doesn't want me to cut salt out competely, so I use the low sodium salt.

 

[geebee]

I wouldn't know as I am sitting here licking salt off a pretzel (only half kidding).

I love salt but I do try my best to eat low salt using garlic powder - that seems to work the best for me. It makes me feel like I am sprinkling salt on food.

 

[Karlynn]

SB - you also mentioned that they also told her to lay off the caffiene. If she quicks the caffiene cold-turkey she'll probably get a headache pretty good for a while.

 

[zipper2]

Being a caffiene addict myself SB i think the salts there too.
Cutting back on salt is no easy task for most of us,all these
processed foods and take outs are so disturbingly high #ed
with salt,i always thought those foot long subs were so healthy
OMG bowl of chili at Tim Hortins 1,3oo milligrams of sodium in half cup.
Had a frutatius muffin thinking fruit and fiber (RIGHT) decent sort of
combination GEEEEZ 710 gram of sodium,we surely dont have to add
salt,it's already there in frighteningly copious amounts.


I'm so glad your DW is home and I do wish all the best to
you both and many ,many more years of togetherness
and as we all fight the battle of the salt together,
not just Alleyne but all of us and the task isnot easy.
Guess we are safer with our own making of meals thus we can
control the salt shaker.Wishing you all the best and happy
to hear she is home.

zipper2

 

[netmiff]

The secret is to make as much from scratch as possible, even bread, which can have a LOT of sodium.


Look in the health food section of your market and you will see lots of good low sodium foods.

Read all labels, even those in the meat section. Stay away from processed foods as much as possible. Ask restaurants to prepare your food w/o added salt.

First of, welcome home, Mrs Superbob!

I like to make as much as I can at home from fresh, jams have way less than half the sugar in the recipe, tomatoes I freeze whole (or half), only add salt to things like potatoes, pasta when cooking (oh, and rice, without salt it is UUUGGGHHH). My PCP says cooking with it is not as bad as shaking it on, but even in potatoes etc., it is only a pinch.

Oh, and we have potatoes or pasta only about twice a week - just meat and lots of veggies or salad the other nights.

I have never liked packaged foods, and drink like a fish after a lunch out with the "girls"

But the really bad thing is that they "hide" it in all kinds of stuff; DH (BTW, the D stands for anything you like, depending on how mad you are at him at the time lol) is on low cholesterol, and we have found cholesterol in JAM of all things. So read EVERY label !

 

[Superbob]

Thanks for all these salty posts. Will be doing a lot of label-reading when go to grocery store tomorrow and will be checking out some of these alternatives suggested. Many thanks again to all -- we'll aim for a gradual reduction to a reasonable salt level. Easier said than done, I know.

 

[PairoDocs]

As others have said, highly seasoned foods are key. Don't forget lemon juice and flavored vinegars. Salt substitutes using potassium taste yucky and aren't good for you if you have kidney problems, etc. Measure the salt into your hand before you add it to anything so you know how much you're adding. Also, learn to cook with fresh ingredients instead of prepared foods (takes more time, but cheaper and you know what you're getting).

Eating less also cuts your sodium, but I don't want to start a war...

Still Up in Idaho,
-Laura

 

[ponygirlmom]

I guess I'm a little late to this party, but as I have relatives who need to restrict salt, I have some experience with this subject.

1. For the best long-term results, lower her personally-cooked, personally-salted intake gradually and let her taste buds adjust. Many others on this list have already pointed out the large amounts of salt in processed foods, and these are the foods that are easy to eliminate immediately. (Well, okay, not EASY, if you have been relying on packaged and restaurant foods. That's a lifestyle change. But easy in the sense that the hidden salt often doesn't even give a salty taste to the food -- as in a sweetened breakfast cereal -- so you don't miss it.)

2. Don't make the culinary mistake of saving your salt allowance for the end of cooking. This results in bland food that generally cannot be rescued by the last-minute addition of seasonings.

Use the allowable amount of salt when it will do the most good for the food, whether that's part of a marinade, macerade, or at an early or mid-point in cooking. This will result in a finished dish with a fuller flavor, and less of a feeling a deprivation for a "salt addict."

3. Others have already suggested that, during the transition from a high-salt to a low-salt diet, strongly-flavored foods will make her feel less deprived.

4. I'm not sure what it is about lime, but personally, I find it generally kills my desire to add salt to food.

5. Is choosing sweeter foods allowable on your wife's diet? For example, instead of potatoes, which will not thrill her without salt, try baked yams scooped right out of their skins. (More vitamins, anyway.) Veeeeery slowly roasting peppers and onions makes them sweet, and you can boost that effect with sugar at the pre-roast sautee stage. Homemade honey-mustard dip (mayo, dijon mustard and honey) will help a host of veggies that she might normally salt. Come to think of it, cherry vinigairette will do that, too.

(I do understand that the above suggestions may not be enjoyable for someone who deliberately makes sweet foods salty, as she does when she salts watermelon. I'll bet she salts sweet corn, too!)

 

[Nancy]

balsamic vinegar is terrific too. If you grill things a lot, do your veggies with a brush of olive oil and some spices, grill them until crisp tender and have grill marks, then brush them with balsamic vinegar.

If you're fan of the Food Network, this method is all over it.

Heluva Good Cheese makes a very nice low sodium cheddar cheese.
Fresh mozarella is low sodium
Mascarpone cheese is low sodium.
Swiss cheese is low sodium.

 

[Superbob]

Okay, we started with some salt substitutes and seasoners at the grocery store, no-caffeine cokes, low-sodium wheat thins, and we got a watermelon and DW swore that for the first time in her life she won't salt her slice -- so all that is a start. I'll be making a list of your suggestions -- heck maybe I can wind up writing a low-salt, low-sugar food book.

 

[CThrock]

Sounds like your on the right track SB. Keep up the good work!!!!Up, Up, and away!!!!

 

[Ross]

It's hard Bob. She'll falter a few times, so don't be too hard on her.

 

[Superbob]

It's hard Bob. She'll falter a few times, so don't be too hard on her.

Well, Superbob's own eating habits are not so good that he can be too severe a scold. We'll both just have to try to make gradual improvement.

 

[Nancy]

Here is another online resource for food. It's wonderful. They have a wide variety and I ordered from them many times for Joe. They were offline yesterday so I didn't post the link then, but are back online now. And they have a monthly newsletter which often has some excellent recipes.

http://www.healthyheartmarket.com/

Here's this month's recipe:

"Summer Greek Kabobs

1 lb. boneless beef sirloin steak, cut into 1-inch cubes(even sizing means even cooking)

1/2 cup Farmer Boy Greek Dressing, divided
Assortment of your favorite grilled vegetables cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces like cherry tomatoes, purple onion, Bell peppers( try green, yellow and red to add color), button mushrooms, asparagus spears, etc.

PLACE steak in large resealable plastic bag. Add 1/4 cup of the dressing; seal bag. Refrigerate 35 min. to marinate. Remove steak from bag; discard bag and marinade.

PREHEAT grill to medium heat. Thread steak onto wooden skewers alternately with the vegetables you've chosen.

GRILL kabobs 15 min. or until steak is cooked through and vegetables are crisp-tender, turning occasionally to avoid burning and brushing occasionally with the remaining 1/4 cup dressing.

Enjoy!"

And if you can get your hands on the book "The No-Salt Cookbook" by David C. Anderson, it's got great ideas and recipes.

The Healthy Heart Market is having a sale on a couple of low salt cookbooks too, so check them out.

 

[Superbob]

Great resource, Nancy! -- I'll check it out. Thanks.

 

[njean]

SB you may also want to check out Amazon.com & go into "Grocery" & check out the low-salt cookbooks they have. I bought one called "Low-Salt Cook Book - 3rd edition" ---- great recipes. I make my own dressings, BBQ sauces, etc.


P.S. It's from the American Heart Association, I may add!

 

[Bonzo Dog]

The jury is still out on Monosodium Glutamate . IMHO Superbob's household and the general populous would be wise to be cautious and watchful of MSG. It is present in many sauces and foods as either a salt alternative or addition to salt.

 

[Ross]

The jury is still out on Monosodium Glutamate . IMHO Superbob's household and the general populous would be wise to be cautious and watchful of MSG. It is present in many sauces and foods as either a salt alternative or addition to salt.

Surprisingly, we've learned that fairly well in the U.S. not too many things have it anymore. It's still around, but not in everything like it once was.

 

[Superbob]

Lots of great ideas in this thread -- Jean, I will seek out that book as well as Nancy's recommendation. Bonzo, we do keep a lookout for MSG -- I believe it is one of those additives DW found some time ago is harmful to her, and I think Ross is right that it is less prevalent than it used to be.

Food labeling has advanced a good deal, and really helps. I've been looking closely at sugars the past few years because of my type 2 diabetes. Now, sodium necause of DW's poential for a major stroke -- and wow, as all here are aware, I'm sure -- the processed foods are just saturated with sodium.

Strangely, none of my doctors ever has instructed me to cut down on sodium, even though I had a mild problem with BP (now controlled). But it seems we'd all be better off trying to use salt with some moderation.

 

[Nancy]

Make sure to check out the meat labels too. They sneek sodium "solution" into many meats, some is labeled, some not. So if you see something like "moist and tender", solution added or anything that sounds like they added wet ingredients, buy something else. I found out that you are not even safe in the custom cuts dept. since they just cut the meat from the same solution laden side of beef, pork etc.

Be careful of bread--Italian bread usually has less sodium, especially Tuscan bread. And milk has quite a bit of sodium, cream does not.