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Health Tips

Reduce Stroke Risk – Out with Sodium!

Yes, May is Stroke Awareness Month, and not smoking, maintaining a lean weight, leading an active life and choosing a more plant-based diet will reduce your risk for strokes. But a study reported in the professional journal Stroke reminds us of the importance of keeping sodium intake down.

The Northern Manhattan Project examined the diets of  >2600 participants for more than 10 years. And ta-da…

 the higher the sodium intake, the greater the risk for having a stroke.

More study results:

  • 88% consumed more than the American Heart Association guideline for less than <1,500 milligrams of sodium per day.
  • There was a 17% increased stroke risk with every 500 mg increase in sodium above the recommendation.
  • Taking in >4,000 mg/day of sodium = BIG stroke risk!

Those study participants who had the highest sodium intake …

  • were heavier in weight,
  • drank more alcohol
  • took in more calories, total fat and saturated fat

Bottom line: Cut your sodium intake to keep your blood pressure in good control and reduce your risk for having a stroke!

Kitchen tips to reduce sodium:

  • Bring home foods that say: No Salt Added or Sodium Free or Reduced Sodium
  • Make more recipes from scratch to control the ingredients.
  • Omit the salt called for in recipes.
  • Use seasonings that do not have a salt base. For example, onion powder rather than onion salt.
  • Herbs and spices can replace salt in many recipes.
  • Rinse canned vegetables, canned legumes and canned tuna in a strainer to discard more of the added salt.

 

Read more | Comments (0) | June 4, 2012

Added Sugar!

Sugar… hmm, we all would probably say that we like sugar and sugar-containing foods.    But USDA research of dietary habits of Americans indicates that added sugar intake is on the rise. It is estimated that 15% of calories come from added sugar – or about 21 teaspoons ( 360 calories/day). The primary source of added sugar is sugar-sweetened carbonated beverages and energy or sorts drinks.  

 High added sugar intake may be associated with:

  •  higher BMI or body weight (linked to diabetes & high blood pressure)
  •  high blood triglycerides levels (linked to strokes)
  •  lower HDL (good)-cholesterol (linked to heart disease)
  • a rise in blood pressure readings (linked to strokes)

Nutrition label and ingredient lookout:

  • Syrup: corn, high-fructose corn syrup, maple, agave
  • “Ose”-ending ingredients: fructose, glucose, sucrose, dextrose
  • Sugar: white, cane, brown, honey

 The new 2010  American Heart Association Added Sugar Guidelines:

  • Women: limit to 100 calories or 6 teaspoons per day
  • Men: limit to 150 calories or 9 teaspoons per day

 It will be pretty much impossible to completely eliminate added sugars – you will have to be very vigilant with looking at the nutrition and ingredients labels on food products.

Check out the sugar content – it will be listed in grams. Try to keep foods to 5 grams of added sugar or less per serving. For example, a serving of Raisin Bran has 17 grams of sugar but a serving of Cheerios has only 1 grams of sugar. What a difference!!

Do not worry about the natural sugars in fruits, milk, plain yogurt and certain vegetables (carrots and beets). These are very healthy foods that contain loads of good nutrition.

Read more | Comments (0) | December 17, 2010