Relative Something

In my ongoing quest for optimal health, it is only logical that I need to choose a healthy diet. I have been lucky for most of my life to have had the freedom to make menu selections with reckless abandon. I’ve never reacted with any food allergies, and I’m not very persnickety about what goes into the food I eat. I have long practiced sparse usage of butter and salt at the table. I don’t like carbonated drinks, so I rarely drink soda pop. I don’t like coffee, so I don’t get much in the way of caffeine. That gives me a head start over plenty of Americans who have fallen into a pattern of poor choices in their daily diet.

My primary struggle, I thought, was with my penchant for sweet things.

Earlier this month, news reports revealed that scientists are suggesting sugar is toxic and should be taxed and regulated like tobacco and alcohol.

Americans consume on average more than 600 calories per day from added sugar, equivalent to a whopping 40 teaspoons.

Ouch.

But it got worse for me. That report was followed by another, this time from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, released about a week later, revealing the top 10 hidden sources of sodium in the American diet.

About 90% of Americans eat more sodium than is recommended for a healthy diet. …Americans eat on average about 3,300 mg of sodium a day. The U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommend limiting sodium to less than 2,300 mg a day, and about 6 out of 10 adults should further limit sodium to 1,500 mg a day.

Guilty. I was aware that I probably was ingesting more salt than I should, in addition to the sweets. What I didn’t realize was that the primary source of sodium wasn’t coming from the salty snacks on which I love to munch. Check out the link to the hidden sources. Bread and rolls are the number 1 source for salt in the American diet! Potato chips, pretzels, and popcorn are way down at the bottom of the 10-worst list.

I have explained before that when I cut down on sweets, I tend to switch to eating more breads. It seems I’ve been moving from one ill to another.

Last week, I finally buckled down and actually read some food labels in an effort to witness this excess of sodium I’m eating. Shocking, I tell you. Shocking! First of all, I discovered that a serving size for bread is one slice. So with every sandwich I make, I’m eating a double serving? I guess my sandwiches are supposed to be open faced. If bread is so loaded with sodium, why the heck doesn’t it taste salty!?

Then I peeked at some cookies a friend gave me. Serving size: 2 cookies, sodium: 120mg. That’s 5% of the recommended daily allowance, right there. But these cookies are really, really good. Irresistibly good. I ate 6. That’s 360mg of sodium. They sure didn’t taste salty. Too bad that I was eating these as a chaser for my main course of pizza… number 3 on the evil list.

Next I looked at the boxes of cereal in my cupboard. They are all lined up so I can easily compare and most appear to be in a range from the best of 60mg (Shredded Wheat) up to 200mg. Then comes my long-time favorite, 100% natural, whole grain wheat with barley, Post Grape-Nuts at a whopping 12% of my daily sodium, 290mg.

I looked closer. The majority of those cereals define their serving size at 1 Cup, but a few switch to 3/4 Cup just to make it interesting. Then comes good ol’ Grape-Nuts. That heaviest dose of sodium is coming from the smallest serving size of 1/2 Cup! I’m pretty sure I’ve been getting about 25% of my daily sodium every time I eat those crunchy nuggets of goodness.

If I’m going to get that much sodium, I would prefer that it taste salty to fulfill that craving. Pass me the Cheez-Its. This healthy diet thing is going to be a struggle.