No-salt diet an impossible goal

Dear Dr. Donohue: My son, at 40, was found to have dangerously high blood pressure. My husband died at age 41 of a heart attack. He also had very high blood pressure. It is a family condition. My son was told to cut out all salt. Is that necessary? Is it possible? His doctor says no salt is allowed. How many milligrams is it reasonable to eat in a day? There’s almost no food without some salt in it. — J.B.

Answer: A low-salt diet is difficult for most people. A no-salt diet is impossible. I’m sure your son’s doctor wants him on a low-salt diet with no salt added to his food. Salt is necessary for life. The salt issue is confusing, because sometimes doctors talk about sodium, sometimes sodium chloride and sometimes salt. Salt and sodium chloride are the same. Sodium is only 40 percent of salt. I’ll give my numbers as sodium chloride (salt) and put the sodium value in parentheses.

The recommended daily allowance for salt has been 6,000 mg — 6 grams — (2,400 mg sodium, or 2.4 grams). New recommendations have lowered it to 3,750 mg salt (1,500 mg sodium). That’s a pretty low-salt diet, one that can aid in decreasing blood pressure. One teaspoon of salt is 6,000 mg. You should eat only half a teaspoon. That’s the total salt intake — including the hidden salt in foods like bacon, sausage, ham, potato chips, pretzels, pickles, olives, sauerkraut, frozen dinners, canned soups, many canned vegetables, bakery products and on and on. Don’t add salt in cooking or at the table.

People’s taste gradually comes around to enjoying food without salt. If your son doesn’t reach that point ever, he can use salt substitutes. They replace sodium with potassium and can be found at many grocery retailers.

His daily diet should include seven servings of whole grains (bread, pasta, cereal), five servings of vegetables, five fruit servings, a reduction in meat intake and consumption of low-fat or fat-free dairy products.

The booklet on hypertension provides more details on this epidemic illness. People can order a copy by writing: Dr. Donohue — No. 104W, Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Enclose a check or money order (no cash) for $4.75 U.S./$6.75 Canada with the recipient’s printed name and address. Please allow four weeks for delivery.

Readers may write Dr. Donohue at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL