Seems logical, given a blood pressure incident…
to take a look at salt content.
I spent a while yesterday going over our recipes and figuring out, well, yes, we could do better.
Discoveries. Your intake should be around 1500 mg a day, up to 2300.
Soy sauce is 920 a tablespoon. Wah! I’m going for the green label ‘low’ salt.
PF Chang’s doublefried noodles are over 7000.
I’m pretty sure the hamburger double no bun we had twice right before this incident (which tasted really salty, and was accompanied by fries) had no little to do with the problem. Probably in the 7000 range.
But things we now know: Mountain Dew is not a sodium offender. Coke is around 60 per can. Bacon is about 200 a slice, depending. Ham, any cured meat, is a problem. Corned beef (refers to the ‘corns’ or kernels of salt, well yes). Veggies generally are not. Potatoes are ok if not salted to death. And salad dressing is often right up there with a slice of bacon. Sauces in general tend to be high. Chicken broth is reasonable; chicken stock is not. Smoked sausage? We’re going to buy pork sausage and add our own spices.
I think it’ll be a good change, in general. Nobody needs 7000 mg of salt in a dish.
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My father has been going through the same thing. He was upset that so many dishes he liked were high in sodium, but he's been finding low sodium alternatives. It takes some work, but it can be done without losing your favorite foods.
Stocks are often available in low-salt versions. Study the nutrition labels. I buy a lot of prepared foods but I check the labels and skip anything with >1000 mg per serving. Less for ingredients in something I will make.
If you don't mind heat, hot spices can really make up for the absence of salt.
What about getting a small container that would hold 1500 mg to 2300 mg of salt for one day. Then you reach in to get your salt, but also see how fast it is going. It might give you pause as to whether you need the salt for that moment. It could be a game to see if you can leave salt at the end of the day.