Need help with low-sodium diet info

[kccc]

Hello all,

My mom has recently had heart surgery, and needs a low-sodium diet. I'm looking for things to cook for her, and having a hard time - just not something I've paid a lot of attention to before.

She is also supposed to be on a diabetic exchange diet as well and eat low-fat/chloresteral too (note the phrase "supposed to"). Of all those restrictions, the salt is currently the most important. Her meals need to be under 500mg each. But it needs to taste good or she won't stick to it.

Any recommended resources from the collective wisdom here? Especially things I can cook ahead and freeze for them.

Thanks in advance!

[Aleria]

Personally, I almost never use salt in my cooking. I've had a sensitivity to salt for 3-4 years and it tastes just fine to me without it. My parents do notice when I leave it out if I'm cooking at their house though
-It will take her a while to get used to it
-Use herbs and other spices to add interest, especially fresh herbs or grinding your own spices
-Go mostly homemade. Premade stuff has WAY too much sodium in it
-Check out Casual Kitchen, he believes using salt in cooking is "cheating" and therefore doesn't use any. I haven't tried any recipes yet, but they sound good

[wosnes]

I've not had heart surgery, but I had a heart attack 15 years ago and have congestive heart failure (as a result of where my heart was damaged from the heart attack). Initially I followed a very low-fat nearly vegan diet. My numbers were always good, but with just a few exceptions, I didn't enjoy what I was eating. Beyond that, my family pretty much stopped eating anything I cooked.

I figured there had to be a way to eat that was healthy for me and that my family would eat. I eventually stumbled upon a way that I thought would work and then found the Mediterranean diet. One of the things I most like about the Mediterranean diet is that the food and cooking methods are easy to use with American food -- and the principles can be applied to American food as well.

When my CHF was diagnosed, my cardiologist told me he didn't care what I ate or how much salt I used in cooking or at the table as long as I avoided processed foods. About 80% of the sodium in our diets comes from processed foods. I will say that his advice is not standard advice. However, it works extremely well for me.

With the exception of tomato products and condiments, processed foods are mostly gone. I do eat all kinds of meat, but generally eat meat only once daily. My primary fats are olive oil, butter and canola oil and I don't really restrict them. I don't go crazy, but I don't measure every drop, either.

The results are that my numbers (blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar and triglycerides) are all significantly better than they have ever been. I will admit that I'm on a low dose of a statin and many people attribute my low cholesterol to that. However, being a nurse I've seem hundreds of people on higher doses of statins with higher cholesterol levels than mine (and not familial high cholesterol). I really think the difference is the absence of processed foods.

Recently I've read some about the anti-inflammatory diet, which is similar to the Mediterranean diet. It's thought that all the chemicals and such in processed foods cause inflammation which in turn causes high cholesterol and the plaque build-up in arteries (if you look at the plaque as something that is there to protect the arteries from damage, it makes sense).

Okay, if I say anything more I'm going to be on my anti-medical establishment soapbox.

[Nicest of the Damned]

When my CHF was diagnosed, my cardiologist told me he didn't care what I ate or how much salt I used in cooking or at the table as long as I avoided processed foods. About 80% of the sodium in our diets comes from processed foods. I will say that his advice is not standard advice. However, it works extremely well for me.

The American Heart Association says up to 75% of the sodium in American diets typically comes from sodium added to processed foods by manufacturers:

https://americanheart.org/presenter.jht ... ifier=4708

So they agree with your cardiologist on that.

[wosnes]

I can tell almost immediately if I get into too much processed food. My feet puff up and I start to notice a difference in my breathing.

[vmsurbat]

No special recipes but I've found that of all the saltless seasoning mixes I've tried (admittedly, not many), I actually like and use "Mrs. Dash Original Blend". It seems to perk up (like salt) a wide variety of savory dishes. I'm not pursuing a low-salt diet, but sometimes, when I'm serving something that is higher in sodium, I consciously try to keep other dishes on the lower side. "Mrs. Dash" helps me meet my goal....

HTH,

[Nicest of the Damned]

No special recipes but I've found that of all the saltless seasoning mixes I've tried (admittedly, not many), I actually like and use "Mrs. Dash Original Blend". It seems to perk up (like salt) a wide variety of savory dishes. I'm not pursuing a low-salt diet, but sometimes, when I'm serving something that is higher in sodium, I consciously try to keep other dishes on the lower side. "Mrs. Dash" helps me meet my goal....

HTH,

I'm going to try that, on your recommendation, at least now that I have determined that it's not potassium chloride. My parents went through a less-salt phase back in the 80's, and they used a potassium chloride salt substitute. Blech!

Evidently, salt substitutes with potassium chloride can kill you:

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/rea ... e-kill-you

They just made me wish I was dead, because then I wouldn't remember that awful taste any more. Ptoo!

Stay away from potassium chloride salt substitutes. They're disgusting.

[wosnes]

Potassium-based salt substitutes are deadly for people in kidney failure, too. Of course, for them it's not only salt substitute, but any food high in potassium. I once had a patient commit suicide by eating tomatoes. It wasn't accidental -- it had happened to him accidentally some years before --
and he knew exactly what he was doing.

Both high and low potassium levels can cause cardiac arrhythmias.

[Nicest of the Damned]

Potassium-based salt substitutes are deadly for people in kidney failure, too.

I'm back from doing some field research at our local supermarket. NoSalt (one brand of potassium chloride salt substitute) does say on the container that anyone with diabetes, heart, or kidney problems should consult a physician before using it.

Of course, I didn't buy it (I won't have that foul stuff in the house), but I was able to look at a container. I did buy some Mrs. Dash Original Blend and Table Blend and some Kikkoman reduced-sodium soy sauce. I used the reduced-sodium soy sauce in making dinner tonight, and I think we're going to switch to it for our cooking. We're picky about our soy sauce (we won't buy most brands, because they are inferior), and we thought the reduced-sodium Kikkoman was good. I didn't get to try the Mrs. Dash yet, since I'm not sure it would go with Szechuan food. I will probably report on at least one kind of the Mrs. Dash tomorrow.

Can I submit my grocery receipt for reimbursement now?

[Nicest of the Damned]

I tried the Mrs. Dash Table Blend. I bought it because it had chili peppers in it, and I love spicy food. It was good (though not particularly spicy, but remember that I like Szechuan food).

I have also gotten some lemon pepper. That was another thing my parents used during my dad's low-salt kick, and as I recall, it was good.

Classic American cuisine relies on salt for seasoning. If she'll eat them, try to find some recipes from other cuisines that rely on other things for seasoning. Don't just cook foods that use salt for seasoning without the salt. One of Mr. Neville's aunts does that, and it just makes bland and unappealing food. I suppose you could get used to it, but why would you want to, when there are so many other recipes out there that don't have so much salt?

-Use herbs and other spices to add interest, especially fresh herbs or grinding your own spices

If you have pre-ground spices that are more than a few years old, throw them out and get new ones. If your dried herbs aren't the same color as the ones in the supermarket, get rid of them. If you have a spice rack full of coordinated jars that you like the look of, you can dump out the contents and replace them with new herbs and spices.

Use panko instead of regular bread crumbs (but check the label, sodium levels vary among brands).

-Go mostly homemade. Premade stuff has WAY too much sodium in it

As does restaurant food. See this slideshow for examples of very salty restaurant food:

http://eatthis.menshealth.com/slideshow ... ds-america

[wosnes]

One of my friends, another nurse, is a case manager for people with congestive heart failure. She had a fit when she heard what my doctor told me to do (avoid processed food, no worries about how much salt is used in cooking or at the table). She did everything but tell me he was a quack -- and she came extremely close to saying that.

In my earlier post I neglected to say that I'm on two drugs for blood pressure. My blood pressure has never been elevated for any length of time. That is, I've had extremely occasional readings when its been elevated, but they've been very isolated. And "elevated" for me is still pretty good for the majority of people ( The highest its ever been is 150/80 -- once). But the medications also increase the contractility of the heart and that's the reason I'm on them. Over the years, the dose has been decreased twice -- mostly because my blood pressure gets low enough that I'm symptomatic.

Five years later, it still comes up. However, she doesn't have any patients who have had their meds decreased, though a few have remained the same.

I've switched to Kosher salt, which by volume has less sodium (about half) than table salt, but taste is barely affected.

[Nicest of the Damned]

No special recipes but I've found that of all the saltless seasoning mixes I've tried (admittedly, not many), I actually like and use "Mrs. Dash Original Blend". It seems to perk up (like salt) a wide variety of savory dishes. I'm not pursuing a low-salt diet, but sometimes, when I'm serving something that is higher in sodium, I consciously try to keep other dishes on the lower side. "Mrs. Dash" helps me meet my goal....

HTH,

Thanks for this recommendation, vmsurbat! I've been using Mrs Dash Original and Table blends at the table in place of salt since October. When I had my physical in November, my blood pressure was down noticeably.

[vmsurbat]

Thanks for this recommendation, vmsurbat! I've been using Mrs Dash Original and Table blends at the table in place of salt since October. When I had my physical in November, my blood pressure was down noticeably.

I am so glad that you let me know, Nicest! I now have the opportunity to say thank you to you for your gentle, repeated "if you are going to eat ANYTHING, even legitimate S's, put it on a plate, put the extras away, and sit down and enjoy it." (I am paraphrasing here!) That persistent bit of advice was just what I needed to hear, even after 2+ years of successful NoSing. My S-days had lost their zing--I believe it was because I had gotten lax with nibbling. Without discrete meals, I overate on S days just because I wasn't paying attention. The ritual of putting even just chips and salsa on a plate helps me to focus and enjoy the food-the bite of the salsa and the crispness of the chips--and feel satisfied and indulged in a way that overeating doesn't.

Warmly,