Ask Leah! The Ingles Dietitian

Sponsored: Low-sodium foods

Sponsored: Low-sodium foods

Q: My doctor has said to cut down on sodium. Why can’t I find foods that have no sodium?

A: Since sodium is a component of living cells, it will be difficult to find food products that have no sodium, but you may find some items that indicate that they are “sodium-free” if they have less than 5 mg of sodium per serving.  More often you may see a label that indicates a food is “very low sodium” (35mg or les of sodium) or “low sodium”(140mg or less of sodium)  or “no added salt” (which may not necessarily mean low sodium!).

Be sure not to depend solely on labels on packaging and look at the Nutrition Facts panel to see how many milligrams of sodium are listed. Remember that this amount is PER SERVING so keep that in mind when you are consuming or using these foods or beverages if you are trying to keep your sodium intake close to a specific number of milligrams per day. 

Resource: Sodium in Your Diet | FDA

Leah McGrath, RDN, LDN

Ingles Markets Corporate Dietitian

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