Please share some do's and don'ts when it comes to a low salt diet.

Exercise: Exercise and a healthy, low salt diet can help keep your blood pressure down.

Even: Even a small decrease in salt intake can lower your chances of heart attack or stroke.

Fiber-more;: Fiber-more; salt-less; lose uncessary calories-carbs/sugars; more vegetables-not out of a can; water.

Do: Do - restrict salt intake (as directed by physician). Fluid retention means more work for the heart.

Watch: Watch salt intake. Read nutrition labels on food packages. Should get less than 2000mg sodium/day.

A: A good way to get rid of extra salt in canned veggies is to strain them and wash them. Removes salt.

Don't: Don't use the salt-shaker! use saltless herb seasoning mixes instead.

If: If you are prone to swelling in your legs and feet, cut your salt intake to help relieve edema.

Keep: Keep to a low salt (less than 2 grams per day) diet.

If: If you can't cut salt out of your diet, ease it out! you can remove overall sodium intake over time.

Don't: Don't add cheese, even if it's healthy.

It's: It's often not the salt shaker that's the problem, but rather the salt in the food; read the labels!

Eat: Eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables. They are naturally low sodium.

A: A low salt diet will not cure high bp. It will help and you may take fewer meds, but it won't cure.

Use: Use lots of spices that don't have sodium! flavor doesn't have to come from salt - use herbs/spices.

Season: Season your food with garlic or pepper instead of salt.

Get: Get rid of any salt in your house. Try pepper instead.

Avoid: Avoid bread intake, pickles, processed food bologna, salami, etc, soup is bad. Fast food is loaded!

Don't: Don't eat out! avoid all processed meat even turkey ham! bread is loaded with salt, cheese, pickles!

Low: Low sodium diet essential for good pressure control. 1-2 grams of sodium per day ideal goal.

Turkey: Turkey bacon is not always low in sodium! read the labels when deciding what to eat.

You: You won't miss salt too much if you can make it past the first two (painful) weeks!

Food: Food preservatives are all sodium-based. Read labels on processed foods and avoid them.

Salt: Salt substitutes are not necessarily ok. Read ingredients; avoid sodium and potassium.

Ask: Ask your doctor about a salt substitute called "no salt" that does not have sodium in it.

Very: Very low salt diets (less than 1, 500mg sodium) aren't any better than low salt diets (less than 3, 000 mg).

Read: Read labels, avoid fast food and cook your own food as much as possible.

Limiting: Limiting sodium to 2, 300mg is as low as you need to go. Restricting sodium more gives no more benefit.

Often,: Often, a low salt diet alone is not enough to control high blood pressure.

The: The best way to follow a low salt diet is to cook your food at home.

Learn: Learn salt's aliases - sodium is a hint! use lemon juice to give a sparkle to foods. Herbs & spices!

Compete: Compete with a friend to create great winning dishes that are low in salt and other sodium content.

Freshly: Freshly prepared food is best for following a low salt diet.

Use: Use pepper or other spices instead.

Any: Myth: any food that is labeled as low sodium is ok to eat if you need to follow a low salt diet.

Make: Make sure you read the labels for salt content on any processed food you buy.

Get: Get out of the habit of salting your food before you even taste it.

Eat: Eat at home more, cook with more fresh foods, and use less salt in food preparation.

For: For good info on low salt diets, take a look at http://www.Wikihow.Com/follow-a-low-sodium-diet.

Avoid: Avoid foods like 'french fries' or 'pickles' which has excess salt per serving.

People: People who start a low salt diet will get their palate used to it soon.

Low: Low salt diet: 140 mg of sodium or less per serving is considered low sodium.

Low: Low salt diet: usually 2, 000 mg of sodium or less per day. Check for your doctor's recommendations.

Low: Low salt diet: cottage cheese & cheese (processed & non-processed) are high in sodium.

Low: Low salt diet: learn to season with ginger, garlic, pepper, lemon, spices & herbs instead of salt.

Avoid: Avoid canned foods. Taste food first, before using saltshaker. Try to keep intake under 2 grams/day.

Taste: Taste food, before using salt. Avoid canned foods. Keep salt intake at no more than 2 grams/day.

Read: Read can labels. Taste food before salting. Aim at less than 1/2 teaspoon of added salt a day.

Blood: Blood pressure responses to changes in dietary sodium & potassium are stable and reproducible.

2300mg: 2300mg or less of sodium/day. If >51yrs, <1500mg/day. Don't add salt; avoid salty food; read labels.

Foods: Foods can have less salt and be healthier if you make them at home - breads and soups, for example.

Reading: Reading labels and menus is an important 1st step. Arm yourself with tips and safe places to eat out.

Look: Look at canned soups very suspiciously. There can be a lot of salt hiding in these.

Start: Start with studying the sodium content of foods you currently eat to get an idea of current usage.

If: If you are going to buy canned soup, buy the equivalent low sodium soup and add flavorings/spices.

Avoid: Avoid processed foods, which can be very high in sodium. Read labels and choose carefully.

Use: Use herbs and lemon juice. You'll hardly miss the salt!

Eat: Eat out less, avoid prepared foods. Most restaurant meals and prepared foods are loaded with salt!

Average: Average american eats 5 tablespoon of salt daily but needs only 1/4th tablespoon daily, 20 x more.

25: 25 years of scientific evidence fails to show benefit of low sodium diet unless under md/dietitian.

Read: Read food labels. Limit sodium intake to<1500 to 2300mg/day. Eat plenty fruit/veges & don't add salt.

Salt: Salt substitute, read labels, avoid processed foods and smoked foods, meat or fish.

Combine: Combine glutamate rich foods with sweet & sour recipes that satisfy gustatory buds replacing salt.

Salt: Salt pleasures the tongue. Use sour sweet savory spices to trick the gustatory requirements of salt.

Be: Be careful! salt and sodium are hidden in many foods.

Restaurant: Restaurant dishes may have surprisingly high levels of salt in them.

The: The vast majority of sodium in the typical diet comes from processed foods.

Vegetables,: Vegetables, fruits, low-fat and nonfat dairy, nuts/beans/seeds are a healthy part of a low salt diet.

Lean: Lean meats/fish/poultry can be a healthy part of a low salt diet.

You: You may be retaining fluid after high salt meals if your watch or rings get tight.

You: You may be retaining fluid after high salt meals if your socks leave marks on your ankles.

Many: Many people become more salt-sensitive as they age.

Eating: Eating a diet rich in potassium can help the body flush out excess sodium. (dash diet).

People: People with high blood pressure should have 1500 mg or less of sodium per day.

A: A wide variety of spices can substitute for salt in cooking.

Add: Add an extra hot pepper in place of some of the salt when cooking chili.

Take: Take the salt off the table and hide it in a cabinet with the rest of your spices.

Ask: Ask for items like sauces or dressings on the side, so you can eat less sodium.

The: The words "soda" and "sodium" mean salt when you are reading a nutrition label.

If: If sodium appears as one of the first five ingredients on the nutrition label, it has a lot of salt.

Check: Check out how many milligrams are in the low-sodium product. It might not be as low as you'd like.

If: If a product says "no salt added, " that doesn't mean it's salt-free.

Many: Many convenience foods have low-sodium versions. Cooking from scratch is even better.

Canned: Canned and pre-packaged foods like soups and frozen dinners often have high salt content.

Make: Make extra of your own homemade soups and meals. Freeze small portions to heat as quick meals later.

Substitute: Substitute carrots for potato chips as a crunchy snack.

One: One cup of canned corn has 384 milligrams sodium, while an ear of corn has only 13 milligrams.

Rinse: Rinse canned vegetables thoroughly to reduce the salt content before eating.

Fresh: Fresh and fresh-frozen vegetables usually have less sodium than canned vegetables.

Grow: Grow vegetables in your own garden and eat them. It's fun and healthy!

Raw: Raw celery has about 130 milligrams of sodium vs broccoli which has only 10 milligrams of sodium.

Corn,fresh: Corn, fresh asparagus, green beans and potatoes are classified as sodium free.

Shellfish: Shellfish is higher in sodium than fish, often ranging up to 500 milligrams per serving.

Canned: Canned tuna may have large amounts of sodium added during processing.

Homemade: Homemade rice pudding is much lower in sodium than pre-packaged pudding mixes.

Sweets: Sweets filled with baking soda, baking powder, buttermilk and salt are probably off limits.

Drink: Drink some water, lie down, and elevate your feet for a half hour to help flush salt from your body.

Monosodium: Monosodium glutamate (msg) is found in most canned soups.

Avoid: Avoid the preservative sodium nitrate (found in many meats) on a low salt diet.

Olives: Olives and pickles are often high in sodium. Watch out!

Many: Many americans consume more than twice the amount of salt they should. Learn the best amount for you.

Cured: Cured meats and fish can be high in salt, so try to eat these less often.

Tomato-based: Tomato-based sauces are often lower in salt than cheesy sauces or those containing olives, bacon, ham.

Go: Go easy on soy sauce, which often has a lot of salt.

Try: Try hot peppers instead of salt when cooking chicken soup.

Try: Try garlic, ginger, chilli and lime instead of salt in stir fries.

Make: Make your own stock and gravy instead of using cubes or granules.

Order: Order vegetable or chicken toppings instead of pepperoni, bacon or extra cheese on pizza.

When: When eating chinese or indian food, plain rice is lower in salt than pilaf or egg fried rice.

Order: Order salad dressing on the side and dip your salad lightly in the dressing.

Reduce: Reduce the amount of salt you cook with a little each day until none is used.

Limit: Limit bacon and breakfast sausage to every once in awhile, if at all.

Percent: Percent daily value helps you compare products and tells you if the food is high or low in sodium.

Canned: Canned peas may have three times more sodium than the frozen peas. Rinse them if you use them.

Processed: Processed foods account for most of the sodium and salt consumed by americans.

Reducing: Reducing salt in the diet can lower blood pressure in some people.

Herbs,: Herbs, spices, and salt-free seasoning blends are better for cooking and putting on the table.

Try: Try dill, curry powder, lemon juice, marjoram, oregano, tarragon, and thyme for cooking green beans.

Try: Try ginger, marjoram, onion, parsley, and sage when cooking peas.

Try: Try dill, garlic, onion, paprika, parsley, and sage instead of salt on potatoes.

Try: Try oregano, basil, parsley, and olive oil instead of salt on tomatoes.

Try: Try onion, pepper, and vinegar instead of salt on greens.

Try: Try rosemary, sage, tarragon, and thyme instead of salt when cooking chicken.

Try: Try curry powder, garlic, rosemary, and mint instead of salt when cooking lamb.

Sea: Sea salt contains just as much sodium as regular salt.

When: When reading food labels, low sodium is defined as 140 mg of sodium per serving.

Salt: Salt substitutes are sometimes made from potassium, so be careful if you are on a low potassium diet.

If: If you have low potassium from your high blood pressure medicine, many salt substitutes can help.

Don’t: Don’t use softened water for cooking and drinking since it contains added salt.

Avoid: Avoid medications which contain sodium such as alka seltzer and bromo seltzer.

Canned: Canned entrees, such as ravioli, spam and chili are high in sodium.

Sardines,: Sardines, caviar, and anchovies are high in salt.

Buttermilk: Buttermilk and cottage cheese are often high in sodium.

Choose: Choose unsalted butter, margarine, or olive oil instead of regular butter.

Asian: Asian restaurants like japanese, thai, and chinese tend to serve high-sodium sauces in their cuisine.

If: If you eat less salt your taste will adjust to low salt so you have nothing to miss but a better b/p.

Smaller: Smaller portions of the same dish contain less sodium.

Locally-owned: Locally-owned restaurants can more easily accommodate requests for less salt than national chains.

Taste: Taste your food before salting and use the salt shaker sparingly, if at all.

When: When dining out bring along your own low-sodium spice mix, like mrs. Dash, to flavor your food.

Round: Round out your meal with simply prepared fruits and vegetables, which are naturally low in sodium.

Go: Go easy on the cheese, olives, deli meat, and croutons in your salad.

Whenever: Whenever you do add salt, add it at the end of cooking so you can taste it.

Spare: Spare the salt and you body may spare the edema.

Ham,: Ham, hot dogs, and sausages are high in sodium.

Instant: Instant puddings are high in sodium. Cook fresh rice pudding instead.

Salsa: Salsa and ketchup may be low in calories and fat but high in sodium, so use them sparingly.

Most: Most U.S. Adults consume over twice the daily recommendation of 1, 500 milligrams of sodium.

The: The ama has called for food manufacturers to reduce sodium in foods by 50% in the next ten years.

Dietary: Dietary approaches to stop hypertension (dash) diet contains low sodium foods.

If: If you ate too much salt today, eat much less tomorrow.

Ask: Ask that your food be prepared without added salt, msg or salt-containing ingredients.

Limit: Limit condiments that are high in salt, such as mustard, ketchup, pickles and sauces.

Ask: Ask that your food be prepared with olive oil, rather than salted butter.

Choose: Choose steamed or broiled fish and ask for lemon and fresh herbs for seasonings.

Too: Too much sodium can cause extra fluid to build up in your body, making your heart work harder.

Symptoms: Symptoms such as swollen ankles, shortness of breath, or weight gain can be cause by too much salt.

There: There are many ways to improve food flavor outside of adding salt; do some research.

If: Myth: if I have a low salt diet all my food will taste bland.

Ignore: Herbs, spices, ginger, onion, garlic - all add taste to your foods without adding salt.

Ignore: Use spices of all varieties to temp your palate and make those foods really interesting.

Ignore: It's a myth that: a low salt diet is boring and tasteless.

Be: Be careful with potassium salt substitutes thatyou do not ingest to much potassium.

Do: Do watch soda labels as they can contain a lot of sodium.

Ignore: Dont add salt to anything you eat.

Ignore: Look at the sodium content of food labels. Try to have less than 1.5 g of sodium a day.