FitSugar

Denny's Sued For High Sodium Foods

FitSugar — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 11:00:01 -0700

We all know that many fast food chain's menu items are high in the sodium department. Armed with this knowledge, we just avoid eating at these places. Although a New Jersey resident doesn't think it's right, and is taking action against one popular chain, Denny's. Together Nick DeBenedetto and the Center for Science in the Public Interest filed a lawsuit, claiming that many of this restaurant's meals "are dangerously high in sodium."

Just how high? To find out read more.

The RDI of sodium per day is 2,300 milligrams, but if you're hitting up Denny's for lunch, a Grilled Chicken Sandwich will run you 2,070 mg, and a Double Cheeseburger has 3,880 mg - that's just in one meal. In the mood for breakfast? A Meat Lover's Scramble contains 3,180 mg of sodium, and a French Toast Platter has 2,000 mg. In their defense, Denny's does offer low-sodium options on their menu such as salads, yogurt, fruit, oatmeal, and plain scrambled eggs.

While it's proven that a diet high in sodium has been linked to high blood pressure and heart problems, do you think restaurants should be forced to lower their sodium content, or is it up to the consumer to make healthy choices when it comes to his or her diet?

Which Snacks Are the Saltiest?

FitSugar — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 04:30:00 -0700

While small amounts of salt are necessary for the body to function normally, too much sodium in the diet contributes to high blood pressure, so you should do your best to avoid taking in too much. A woman shouldn't exceed more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day. You may be thinking you don't need to worry because you never sprinkle salt on your food, but many pre-made foods already contain high amounts of sodium. So take this quiz to find out if you know which foods are the healthier choices.

Question 1 of 4

Which crunchy snack contains MORE sodium?

Label Able: Nigari

FitSugar — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 08:00:00 -0700

I just reread the label of my favorite mac-n-cheese alternative, the Country Cheddar Bowl by Amy's Kitchen, and happened to catch something on the list of ingredients that I didn't recognize - nigari. In parentheses it says "magnesium chloride, a natural firming agent," but that use of the word "natural" didn't make me feel any better.

I trust food from Amy's Kitchen because it's made with such wholesome ingredients, so nigari can't be bad for me, right? I decided to do a little research. To find out what I discovered, read more.

Magnesium chloride is a salt that's highly soluble in water. In Japan, it's known as nigari, derived from the Japanese word for "bitter." It's a white powder made from seawater after the sodium chloride has been removed and the water evaporated. It's an important coagulant used when making tofu or soy milk and is also found in baby formula. Well, that's a relief. I knew Amy wouldn't steer me wrong.

5 Saltiest Meals, With a Side Order of Hypertension

FitSugar — Wed, 13 May 2009 09:00:00 -0700

Eating out is always a treat, but the problem with eating food someone else makes is that you have no idea how much sodium it's loaded with. 2,300 mg of salt (one teaspoon) is the recommended daily limit for healthy people, but if you have issues with high blood pressure, 1,500 mg is your limit. According to a study by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), "Unsafe levels of sodium chloride, or salt, in chain restaurant meals increase one's chance of developing hypertension, heart attacks, strokes, and kidney disease." This nonprofit food safety and nutrition watchdog group wants to reveal five meals from popular restaurants that should get a ticket for their obscene sodium contents.

Red Lobster Admiral's Feast with Caesar salad, Lobster-topped mashed potato, cheddar bay biscuit, and a lemonade - 7,106 mg
Chili's Buffalo Chicken Fajitas complete with tortillas and condiments, and a Dr. Pepper - 6,916 mg
Chili's Honey-Chipotle Ribs with mashed potatoes and gravy, seasonal vegetables, and a Dr Pepper: 6,440 mg

To see the rest read more.

Olive Garden Tour of Italy (lasagna) with a breadstick, Garden Fresh salad with house dressing, and a Coca-Cola: 6,176 mg
Olive Garden Chicken Parmigiana with a breadstick, Garden Fresh salad with house dressing, and raspberry lemonade: 5,735 mg

They also list five kid's meals that have high sodium content. To see those foods, check out their website.

New York Wants to Cut Back on Salt Too

FitSugar — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:00:00 -0700

You gotta love New York. It's really looking out for its New Yorkers with bans on smoking, bans on trans fat, posting calorie counts on menus, and now, NY is tackling salt. Most of the salt Americans consume comes from the processed foods we eat - not from the extra salt we sprinkle on. So New York officials are meeting with food makers to discuss ways they can cut back on the sodium they use in prepared and processed foods such as soups, pasta sauce, salad dressing, and bread.

Interested in hearing the details? Then read more.

Unlike sugar, there's no substitute for salt, and many foods such as cream soups just won't taste the same without it. For that reason, the food industry is hoping the request to reduce salt in foods will be voluntary, not mandatory. New York's salt initiative has a goal of cutting salt content in foods by 20 percent within five years, which is modeled after a plan carried out in Britain. The belief is that if salt content is reduced gradually over time, our taste buds will get used to the flavor of less salty foods.

The daily recommended intake for salt is 2,300 mg, and a high salt diet can raise blood pressure, which raises a person's risk for heart disease. Critics say that not everyone is sensitive to a high salt diet, so they don't agree with this government intervention. What's your opinion? Do you think New York should demand that the food industry reduces its salt content in foods or should it be up to New Yorkers to make healthy choices for themselves?

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Healthy Eating Tip: Don't Salt the Pot

FitSugar — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:00:00 -0800

Has this ever happened to you? When cooking up a big pot of soup, you add salt to enhance the flavor. When you taste a spoonful, you can't even taste it, so you keep sprinkling more and more salt into the pot. In doing so, you can end up adding huge amounts of sodium without realizing it. When you finally pour yourself a bowl, you don't really know how much salt you're actually eating. Next time you put the pot on the stove to start a soup, I suggest not salting the entire pot of soup. Instead, after ladling out individual servings, allow your family or dinner guests to salt their own soup. Everyone will be able to monitor their salt intake more precisely, and I find you're able to taste the salt and other flavors more. You can also reduce the need for salt by flavoring your soups with fresh herbs, spices, and garnishes like Italian parsley.

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Do You Salt Your Food?

FitSugar — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 03:30:00 -0700

I love salt, almost as much as I love sweets. For many of my meals, I like to sprinkle a little on my food to add just a hint of flavor. I know it's not healthy to use a lot of salt, especially because high blood pressure runs in my family, but everything's fine in moderation, right? So tell me . . .

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Salty Series: "Healthy" Foods

FitSugar — Fri, 16 May 2008 13:00:00 -0700

As we all know, premade foods can contain huge amounts of hidden sodium, but weren't you surprised by the disgustingly high amounts in the entrées and smaller dishes I told you about? Well here is a list of foods, published in Men's Health, that should also be ashamed of itself. These foods are posing as healthy, but they have insane amounts of salt. Just a reminder that the upper limit of daily sodium is 2,300 mg a day, which is equal to about one teaspoon. If you're concerned about high blood pressure, you may want to skip these "healthy" foods the next time you go out.

Saltiest Dessert: Atlanta Bread Company Raspberry Scone - 1,500 mg. Who new dessert could be so salty? That's as much sodium as 12 strips of bacon.
Saltiest Soup: Baja Fresh Chicken Tortilla Soup - 2,760 mg. That's more than a day's worth in just one serving.
Saltiest "Health" Food: Chili's Guiltless Grill Chicken Platter - 2,780 mg. Be a smart consumer. When food is advertised as lowfat or low in calories, what they've taken away they make up for with added sugar and salt. What's funny (or disgusting) is that Chili's Chicken Fried Steak has less sodium: 2,750 mg.
Saltiest Chinese Food Entrée: P.F. Chang's Beef with Broccoli - 3,752 mg. Sounds healthy, right? Well the special brown sauce is made mostly with soy sauce.
Saltiest Seafood Entrée: Romano's Macaroni Grill Grilled Teriyaki Salmon – 6,590 mg. Fish seems like a healthy option, but the sauce is what'll get you. Order plain grilled fish instead.
Saltiest Salad: Romano's Macaroni Grill Chicken Florentine - 5,460 mg. Those poor veggies are encrusted in salty toppings (olives, capers, Parmesan, and salad dressing). Plus the portion size is humongous.

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Salty Series: Smaller Dishes

FitSugar — Wed, 07 May 2008 11:00:00 -0700

Some people are in love with salt. They can't eat their food without adding a little sprinkle here and there. It's fine to indulge in a little of the white stuff, but what many of us forget is that there's already tons of sodium in the foods we eat already. I told you about the sodium content of some entrées at popular restaurants, and now you may want to put down that salt shaker before reading about these smaller dishes.

Saltiest Side Dish: Denny's Honey Smoked Ham, grilled slice - 1,700 mg. It's steeped in salty brine before it's smoked.

Saltiest Breakfast: Arby's Sausage Gravy Biscuit - 3,754 mg. What can you expect from cured meat and lard? Well surprising enough, the gravy is the real culprit here with 2,600 mg of sodium on its own.

Saltiest Appetizer: Papa John's Cheesesticks with Buffalo Sauce - 6,700 mg. Even if you split this with two friends, you're still getting your daily supply of sodium and you haven't even gotten to the meal yet. In case you were wondering, one stick has the same amount of sodium as one slice of cheese pizza.

Is your mouth feeling dry yet? Want to see how much sodium is in a kid-sized pizza? Then read more.

Saltiest Kids' Meal: Cosi Kid's Pepperoni Pizza - 6,405 mg. WTF? Kids should be getting about 2,000 mg of sodium and this pizza contains three days worth. Fifty turkey sandwiches at Cosi have the same amount of sodium.

Saltiest Bread: Dunkin' Donuts Salt Bagel - 4,520 mg. This can't be right, oh but it is. It's so right, it's wrong.

Saltiest Sandwich: Quiznos Turkey Bacon Guacamole Large Sub with Cheese and Reduced-Fat Ranch Dressing - 4,670. This is two days worth of sodium. Two days! Eww.

Saltiest Pizza: Pizza Hut Meat Lover's Stuffed Crust Pizza (3 slices of the 14-in large) - 5,070 mg. The more meat, the more sodium. Six meats to be exact.

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Salty Series: Entrées

FitSugar — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 03:30:00 -0700

When it comes to restaurant fare and processed food it seems sodium lurks in unexpected places and unexpected quantities. The theory is that salt makes everything taste better, so more salt means tastier food, right? Not really, but you wouldn’t know that after seeing the amounts of sodium used in some of the entrées at some popular food chains. Take a look and see what meals you should avoid, especially if high blood pressure is a health concern of yours. Just to remind you that the upper limit of daily sodium is 2,300 mg a day, which is equal to about one teaspoon. Here's a list of the top saltiest dinners you can order.

Saltiest Burger: Hardee's 2/3 pound Monster Thickburger - 2,770 mg. Most of the sodium comes from the bun and the three slices of processed cheese which make up for 780 mg.
Saltiest Pasta: Fazoli's Rigatoni Romano - 3,180 mg. This dish is made with Italian sausage, meat sauce, and cheese, all of which have high amounts of sodium. Put them together and bada-boom, baba-bing, you've got one salty dish.
Saltiest Beef Entrée: Bob Evans Steak Tips and Noodles - 4,131 mg. Think beef stroganoff soaked in gravy. The steak on its own has 638 mg of sodium. That's some salty gravy.
Saltiest Frozen Dinner: Swanson Hungry-Man XXL Roasted Carved Turkey - 4,480 mg. The label on the box says that the meal is actually two servings, but what kind of hungry man is going to share?

To see the rest of this atrocious list read more.

Saltiest Comfort Food: Denny's Meat Loaf Dinner (with Mashed Potatoes and Corn) - 5,080 mg. It's best to make your own.
Saltiest Mexican Entrée: Chili's Buffalo Chicken Fajitas - 5,690 mg. Where does it all come from? Fried chicken, Buffalo sauce, blue cheese, smoked bacon, ranch dressing, and sour cream.
Saltiest Dish in America: Romano's Macaroni Grill Chicken Portobello - 7,300 mg. This is well beyond your three day limit of salt. That's so bad.

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