Tag Archives: food

Common Foods Loaded with Excess Sodium

Posted on by MaryO
salty6

The Salty Six

 

 

Eating too many salty foods can create all sorts of health problems, including high blood pressure. But did you know a lot of common foods are packed with excess sodium? It’s not just the french fries and potato chips you need to be careful with.

That’s why the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association is increasing awareness of sodium and the “Salty Six” – common foods that may be loaded with excess sodium that can increase your risk for heart disease and stroke.

Sodium overload is a major health problem in the United States. The average American consumes about 3,400 milligrams of sodium a day – more than twice the 1,500 milligrams recommended by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. That’s in large part because of our food supply; more than 75 percent of our sodium consumption comes from processed and restaurant foods.

heart-checkBe sure to keep in mind that different brands and restaurant preparation of the same foods may have different sodium levels. The American Heart Association’s Heart-Check mark—whether in the grocery store or restaurant helps shoppers see through the clutter on grocery store shelves to find foods that help you build a heart-healthy diet.

Sodium doesn’t just affect your heart health, but your physical appearance as well. Excess sodium consumption may make your face feel puffy, give you bags under your eyes, increase swelling in your fingers and make your jeans look, and feel, tighter. In fact, from an American Heart Association/American Stroke Association consumer poll, 75 percent of respondents stated that their pants feeling too tight is their least favorite effect of bloating which may be associated with excess sodium consumption.

As you gear up for your next grocery store run or order from the menu, keep the Salty Six in mind. All you need to do to make a heart-healthy choice is to look for the Heart-Check mark. Another helpful tool is the Nutrition Facts label on the package and calorie labeling in restaurants, which together with the Heart-Check mark helps you make wise choices for the foods you and your family eat. Make the effort to choose products that contain less sodium. It’s worth it!

Here’s a quick look at the Salty Six, the top sources for sodium in today’s diet (download the infographic as a pdf)

Article from http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter/HealthyDietGoals/Salty-Six_UCM_446090_Article.jsp

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Monday – Seven Weeks Post-Op

Posted on by MaryO

Things are really getting more normal here as time goes on.  7 weeks ago, I never would have imagined it.

DH still can’t drive but he asked to borrow my car one day last week and I said NO.  Soon, though.

He’s able to put sweaters over his head now, a big improvement from a few weeks ago when he was cutting t-shirts in half and wearing 2, or using a safety pin to hold everything together.

Next Tuesday, March 26, he’ll go for his first cardiac rehab.  I don’t know if they schedule the “real” ones then, but this is more of an intake meeting and a test to see where he before he can get started.

I’ve started resuming my regular activities – on Saturday, I went to a 5-hour with no problem and I wasn’t spending my time worrying, either, although some mornings when he wakes up late, I’ll go check to be sure he’s breathing.


One thing I’ve done as part of our more healthy eating – I bought a soymilk maker.  I had one in my cart on amazon.com for a while, watching the price.  Then, one day, they didn’t offer it anymore.  I kept searching on amazon for several days and the next version became available.  I put that in my cart and watched.  On Wednesday, the price dropped to $119 – $20 less than the first one I’d wanted.  I jumped on that and ordered it Wednesday.  Thursday, it went back up to $139 so I played that right!

The soymilk maker arrived on Saturday and I made almond milk first.  Today, I have soybeans soaking right now and will make the first batch of soymilk in about an hour.

Bob's Red Mill

Bob’s Red Mill (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I just went on amazon to get a link to the one I got and found the price back to $119!  It comes with a small bag of Laura soybeans to get you started but I’d already ordered Bob’s Red Mill.

Yesterday, I was singing in the choir at church and DH decided to go along.  Before church, so many of the choir members and others went over to give him a big hug and say how well he looked.  During prayer request time, he stood up to thank the church for their prayers and folks started clapping.

After church, we decided to stop for breakfast in a newesh restaurant in the neighborhood.  While waiting in line, some neighbors also arrived.  They said they hadn’t seen either of us for a while.  I mentioned DH’s heart attack and it turned out that other man had had one too, about 15 years ago.  They had lots to talk about.  The other guy did a kind of at-home chelation which sounded a bit odd but it worked for him to remove calcium deposits.  It didn’t sound like anything I’d want to try!

This morning I was teaching piano and one of my students is the associate pastor of my church.  He said how powerful that DH stood up yesterday and demonstrated the power of prayer.

Not much else here – everything’s pretty normal except for not driving or walking the dog but those things will come.

Hooray!

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World Salt Awareness Week

Posted on by MaryO
How to understand and use the US Nutritional F...

How to understand and use the US Nutritional Fact Label (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

To reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke—

Everyone can:

Know your recommended limits for daily sodium intake.

Choose to purchase healthy options and talk with your grocer or favorite restaurant about stocking lower sodium food choices.

Read the Nutrition Facts label while shopping to find the lowest sodium options of your favorite foods.

Eat a diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables and frozen fruits and vegetables without sauce.

Limit processed foods high in sodium.

When eating out, request lower sodium options.

Support initiatives that reduce sodium in foods in cafeterias and vending machines.

More at CDC – DHDSP – Salt: What You Can Do.

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Low Sodium Crockpot Vegetable Broth

Posted on by MaryO
a slow cooker Oval Crock Pot

An Oval Crock Pot (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I’ve been making this for years, even before the heart attack, mostly because I’m too cheap to buy pre-made vegetable broth.  I also do something similar with chicken.

I save all my vegetable scraps such as carrot peelings, celery ends, onion skins, garlic skins and ends, bell pepper scraps, ends from trimming cabbage, trimmings from tomatoes, broccoli stalks.

Belonging to a CSA farm, we get lots of veggies during the summer.

I put all the peelings in a Ziplock Freezer 1 gallon bag and save them in the freezer, and keep adding to the big bag until it’s full.

When I’ve gathered a  couple of full bags, I take them out and dump them in the crock pot and fill with water (about 6 quarts), cover and set on LOW for overnight.

Allow to cool completely and ladle into a colander in it with a big bowl under it.   Discard all the scraps in the colander.

Package up the broth into quart-sized Ziplock freezer bags, 2 cups per bag, canning jars or other freezable containers.

You can also freeze some of the broth in an ice cube tray. Pop out the cubes and put in a freezer bag, labeled and dated. Use these when a recipe calls for 1 to 2 Tbsp. of stock or broth.

To use this with chicken – I do all of the above and save chicken bones and parts in a separate freezer bag,  When it’s time for the crockpot, I add the chicken to the veggies and cook overnight.  Strain well!

Reduced-sodium Tomato Soup

Posted on by MaryO

The original recipe:

Ingredients for heart healthy homemade tomato soup:

  • 1 can (15-ounces) reduced-sodium tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes
  • 1 cup sodium-free or reduced-sodium vegetable broth
  • 2 cups fat-free milk
  • 2 Tablespoons Smart Balance or Olivio Light buttery spread or similar heart healthy buttery spread
  • ½ to 1 Tablespoon granulated white sugar
  • ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon ground pepper
  • You can also add rice

In a medium saucepan on medium heat, melt the Smart Balance or Olivio Light

  • Add vegetable broth, canned reduced-sodium tomatoes, salt, sugar and pepper to the saucepan. Stir to incorporate. Over medium-low to medium heat, bring mixture to a slow bubble, but do not allow mixture to reach a boil.
  • Add the fat-free milk to the tomato mixture in the saucepan. Over medium-low to medium heat, stirring occasionally, bring to a slow bubble for approximately 5 minutes. Do not allow soup to reach a boil.
  • Remove from heat and cover the saucepan; allow soup to sit for 3 to 5 minutes before serving.
  • One cup equals one serving; recipe yields approximately six servings

Adapted from The Examiner

My version:

Ingredients for heart healthy homemade tomato soup:

  • 1 can (15-ounces) reduced-sodium stewed tomatoes
  • 1 cup sodium-free vegetable broth
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • Chunks of red and green pepper
  • 2 cups fat-free milk
  • 2 Tablespoons Olivio Light buttery spread
  • ½ to 1 Tablespoon granulated white sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon Mrs. Dash
  • Leftover rice

In a medium saucepan on medium heat, melt the  Olivio Light

  • Add vegetable broth, canned reduced-sodium tomatoes, onion, peppers, sugar and Mrs. Dash to the saucepan. Stir to incorporate. Over medium-low to medium heat, bring mixture to a slow bubble, but do not allow mixture to reach a boil.
  • Add the fat-free milk to the tomato mixture in the saucepan. Over medium-low to medium heat, stirring occasionally, bring to a slow bubble for approximately 5 minutes. Do not allow soup to reach a boil.
  • Remove from heat and cover the saucepan; allow soup to sit for 3 to 5 minutes before serving.
  • One cup equals one serving; recipe yields approximately six servings