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COLLECTIVE
WIZDOM.COM
Real People (Sometimes Real
Names) Share Real Health
and Life Stories
WIZDOM.COM
Real People (Sometimes Real
Names) Share Real Health
and Life Stories
| THE BEST MEDICINEf- LAUGH! FIRST DOSE There are always two ways to look at everything, I guess. My wife and I were sitting at a table at my high school reunion last October, and I kept staring at a drunken lady swigging her drink as she sat alone at a nearby table. My wife noticed me staring and asked me, "Do you know her?". "Yes", I sighed, "She's my old girlfriend. I understand she took to drinking right after we split up those many years ago, and I hear she hasn't been sober since." "My God!" says my wife, "Who would think a person could go on celebrating that long?" Got a Joke? E-mail it to us: frontpage@collectivewizdom .com |
| THE BEST MEDICINE- LAUGH! SECOND DOSE Last night, my friend and I were sitting in the living room and I said to her, "I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine and fluids from a bottle. If that ever happens, just pull the plug." She got up, unplugged the TV, and threw out my wine |
DIET AND FITNESS:
How Much Salt Is In My Food?
By Susan M. Callahan, Associate Editor and Featured Columnist
Related Links
Sodium Content of Common Foods
How Much Salt Is In My Food?
Sugar Content of Common Foods Directory
Foods That Reduce Blood Pressure
Foods That Fight Cancer
Waist Size Matters
My Heart Attack-Personal Stories from Survivors
Here’s a Quick test of your Salt IQ. Which has more salt—McDonald’s
French Fries or an 8 ounce bottle of V-8 juice?
If you answered the Big Mac, you’d be wrong. A single 8 ounce
bottle of V-8 juice contains over 620 mg of sodium. McDonald’s large
French Fries have 330 mg of sodium.
Medical experts say that we only need about 200 milligrams of sodium
each day. But the average American consumes 7 times that much each
day. "Americans are getting a hidden salt load - they have no clue
that they are eating so much. So many Americans get their food
through restaurants, fast foods and processed foods," insisted James
Rohack, member of the American Medical Association's board of
trustees and cardiology professor at the Texas A&M Health Science
Center.
Salt in excess damages the arteries by raising blood pressure. Excess
salt contributes to heart disease. Extreme salt imbalance acts like a
poison and can lead to death.
The problem is, most of the salt overload consumed each day is
hidden. Moreover, processed foods often mask the taste of salt with
other food flavorings and additives.
If you are concerned about your salt intake, and you are serious
about managing it, the first question you’ll need to answer is “How
Much Salt Is In My Food?” The only sure way to know is to read the
labels. But the salt content of many foods are not labeled ---pick up a
slab of bacon at the grocer’s. Also, if you’re eating out at the local
diner in the U.S. or a pub in the UK, you will not find the salt content
written on the menu. There is no easy solution. But one helpful
strategy may be to know, in general, how much sodium your typical
meals contain.
Take an “average” breakfast of two bacon strips, scrambled eggs,
two slices of toast and a cup of coffee.
Here’s the salt total:
- bacon, 650 mg
- eggs, 55 per egg
- coffee 4-8 mg
That’s 709-713 mg --- 3 times more than your body needs and you’
ve got at least two more meals to go before bedtime. Let’s say for
lunch you choose a garden salad and a bowl of soup. --salad- little to
no salt -- single can of soup, up to 1800 mg of sodium. We’ve not
eaten dinner yet and already you would have consumed over 2500
mgs of sodium, well in excess of what your body needs and even
more than the generous 2300 recommended by medical authorities
(See “How Much Is Too Much Salt”.)
Click here for a list of the salt content in common foods . For help
converting mg to grams and develop a daily salt budget, click here.
If you’ve lowered your content as much as you can by food choice
and you just can’t do without the taste of salt, try salt substitutes
such as Mrs. Dash, Also Salt or No Salt.
by The JavaScript Source
