The salt demons start grabbing us early in life, new study finds

Salt has become one of the evil triangle of foods in my life, along with fat and sugar, since my angioplasty two years ago. Salt is in every processed food we eat, and especially so in snack and baked foods.

Pepperidge Farm Goldfish, once considered a healthy snack, really aren't for me. — Pepperidge Farm Goldfish, once considered a healthy snack, are one of many packed with salt. Read labels when buying for your children, and yourself.

So I wasn’t surprised by a recent headline I saw, Kids’ Food Cravings Mean Diet Too High in Salt, CDC Says.

“Kids love pizza, bologna, cheese and chicken nuggets. U.S. public health officials don’t like the salt in those foods and say a diet dominated by them may harm children’s future health,” the Bloomberg story notes. And the news just gets worse. Continue reading “The salt demons start grabbing us early in life, new study finds” →

October 3, 2014 2

Costco has switched bread crumb brands, shame on you Costco

I wrote early this year about a great panko breadcrumb find at Costco. Indeed, the giant box lasted me from February through August. But I was very disappointed when I went back to Costco recently only to find it had switched to a different brand of panko breadcrumbs — one that’s incredibly high in salt. Shame on you Costco!

Costco has dropped a low-sodium brand of panko and now carries this from McCormick, an offering loaded with salt. Shame on you Costco.

McCormick panko breadcrumb nutrition information

The warehouse store now carries McCormick brand Tuscan Herb panko bread crumbs. Anything that has a name like that is likely loaded with salt. A quick check of the nutrition panel confirmed my worst fears. A half-cup of this brand has 560 mgs of sodium, or a third of my daily limit. That’s simply unacceptable. Continue reading “Costco has switched bread crumb brands, shame on you Costco” →

September 22, 2014 5

Dumping junk food: two years and counting for me

This blog began after I had angioplasty done to open a severely blocked artery to my heart. I recent passed the two-year mark since that surgery, passing a physical with flying colors.

You are not what you eat: Is fat as bad as we thought? from Eva Voinigescu on Vimeo.

To reach this point, I have completely changed how I eat, walking away from all the high-fat, high-sodium, high-sugar foods I once loved and lived for. It’s been extremely tough, but there are rewards. One came recently when I was invited to be a guest on a TV show dealing with health, fat and eating habits. Continue reading “Dumping junk food: two years and counting for me” →

September 8, 2014 0

Life two years after angioplasty: thinner, hungier and hopefully healthier

While this is a food blog and not a health blog, I ask reader indulgence for this post which will talk a bit about my health. I recently had my two-year checkup for my heart following the angioplasty I had done in 2012.

The news was all good. My blood pressure is in normal ranges now, although I take medication to keep it there. And my doctor took my off one of my post-surgery medications, something called beta blockers which slow your heart down. Taking those the past two years meant I always felt I was walking through mud, fighting my way every step, really.

Me, following angioplasty in 2012. I've since lost 23 pounds. — Me, following angioplasty in 2012. I’ve since lost 23 pounds.

I never felt rested and I certainly never felt any of the added energy people kept thinking I should feel after having a major artery unblocked. Sleeping was more fitful and I was constantly constipated, which I’m only now seeing is a side effect of those medications. Continue reading “Life two years after angioplasty: thinner, hungier and hopefully healthier” →

August 29, 2014 2

Soup that’s low-salt: this brand didn’t really make the grade

Canned soups are some of the highest sodium per serving products you can buy today in your local supermarket or food shop. One cup of Progresso chicken noodle, for example, has 690 mgs of sodium, more than half my daily recommended level. And a can often is more than one serving.

Imagine low-sodium soups: I applaud the effort, but taste is lacking, big time.

So I’ve missed soup terribly in the 18 months since my angioplasty. My wife has tried making some with only vegetables, but it didn’t really taste all that inviting to me. So I was excited to see some soups at my local Jewel recently calling themselves “light in sodium.” The soups, under the Imagine brand and made by Hain Celestial Group, an organic processor, even came in interesting flavors like garden broccoli. Continue reading “Soup that’s low-salt: this brand didn’t really make the grade” →

April 30, 2014 1

How much salt is too much? Here’s a simple guide

How much salt is too much for you to eat? General guidelines these days say 2,300 mgs for normal people and 1,500 mgs for those with heart or blood pressure issues (i.e. me) or people 51 or older.

So how do you translate that into meals, especially meals eaten away from home? My rule is to try to stay under 1,200 mgs a day since I assume measurements on packaged products or for restaurant nutrition menus can be off a bit. That translates into 400 mgs a meal. That’s for a meal, not a single part of a meal like a turkey burger or side dish like broccoli or whole wheat pasta.

Sliced meats like this are a no-no on a low-salt diet. Even reduced salt varieties have more salt than you need at one meal.

That’s not much at all. To achieve that level you have to avoid: Continue reading “How much salt is too much? Here’s a simple guide” →

March 17, 2014 1

Sugar and heart disease: is sugar deadly?

Sugar has been the one vice (of fat, salt and sugar) that I have had the most difficulty dropping since my angioplasty 18 months ago. I feel like without it, in things like frozen yogurt and low-fat cookies, my food life would be endlessly boring.

so I was extremely saddened to see reports of a new study linking sugar and heart disease.

nutrition labeling — A 3 Musketeers bar nutrition panel, is sugar the culprit for heart problems, rather than the fat or salt we also need to watch?

A CBS News report on this study states:

“Having a cinnamon roll with your morning coffee, a super-sized sugary soda at lunch and a scoop of ice cream after dinner would put you in the highest risk category in the study. That means your chance of dying prematurely from heart problems is nearly three times greater than for people who eat only foods with little added sugar. Continue reading “Sugar and heart disease: is sugar deadly?” →

February 10, 2014 1

Paleo Diet: heard of it? Don’t give it a second thought

The Paleo Diet has surfaced in our constant quest to find magic bullets for how we eat in America. It basically advocates going back to the type of diet are far distant ancestors ate while they were hunting and gathering.

It’s always sounded a bit wacky to me and U.S> News seems to agree with me in its latest rankings of various diet plans.

Feeling like a caveman? Better not to eat like one.

“The Paleo diet also doesn’t show any significant evidence to prove its role to prevent heart disease and its favorable role in the weight-loss. This is just a few reasons why the Paleo diet ranked last on the best diets list,” one report notes. Continue reading “Paleo Diet: heard of it? Don’t give it a second thought” →

January 22, 2014 2

Vending machine calorie counts are coming

Vending machine snacks are notoriously high in calories, fat, sugar and salt, so I haven’t bought anything from such a machine for the more than a year since my angioplasty. Now, the federal government is requiring machine operators to post calorie counts for everything in them.

The hope is seeing calorie counts will convince people to eat fewer calories. It’s the same logic behind the federal mandate that large restaurant chains also post calorie counts for their foods. Regulators these days are obsessed with the national obesity epidemic and seem to think tackling calories is the best way to fight it. I’m happy for more labeling but think people also need to be seeing how much salt (which contributes to high blood pressure), fat (which can lead to clogged arteries and heart problems) and sugar (too much of which can trigger diabetes) are in every product as well.

Continue reading →

January 14, 2014 0

Thanksgiving Turkey: Beware the hidden salt of self-basting turkeys

Thanksgiving turkey should be a no-brainer for those watching their salt, fat and sugar intake. The white meat of the turkey (sorry no fatty dark meat or skin on your plate) is lean enough to eat.

But unfortunately, turkeys can hide mountains of salt depending on which kind you buy. Like everything else in the normal grocery store, you need to check the nutrition labels before buying. Why? Because any turkey that includes liquid for self-basting likely has tons of salt in it. Even some that aren’t self-basting also are injected with juices to aid cooking and those juices are salt solutions basically.

Beware turkeys like this one that are self-basting. They're loaded with salt. — Beware turkeys like this one that are self-basting. They’re loaded with salt.

Here’s what I found on a walk past the turkey cases at a local Jewel supermarket in the Chicago area. The first turkey I looked at, a self-baster had 230 mgs of sodium per serving. Compare that to a fresh turkey I found that has between 50 and 70 mgs per serving.

That’s a major difference particularly if you’re planning to eat more than one serving, four ounces, as most people do on Thanksgiving. Continue reading “Thanksgiving Turkey: Beware the hidden salt of self-basting turkeys” →

November 19, 2013 8

Category: blood pressure