No Salt Diet – Salt contains sodium, which is important for the body. However, excess sodium intake can harm the body. Therefore, some people need to go on a no-salt diet.
How to Do
Here are some ideas for eating a healthy diet without salt.
1. Limit Processed Foods
Processed foods in cans, bottles, plastic or other containers are very likely to contain high levels of salt or sodium. If you decide to go on a diet, it is recommended that you avoid processed foods.
You also have to be more observant when reading the ingredients contained in the packaging of each processed product. Know the sodium content of the packaged foods you buy.
2. Consume Fresh Fruits, Vegetables, and Meat
Fresh fruit and vegetables do not contain added salt. When on a healthy, no-salt diet, avoid frozen or canned fruits and vegetables. Both are usually added as a preservative.
Also, choose freshly cut chicken or meat. The reason is, sellers are injecting a saline solution into poultry to make it fatter.
3. Pay attention to the sodium level on the package
Salt contains sodium. Excess sodium intake can lead to hypertension.
Sodium is found in many packaged foods. So, how do you find out the sodium levels in food?
Observe the number of servings in a pack. One pack of food does not equal one serving. One pack usually consists of several servings. Look at the words sodium or sodium. This is what indicates the presence of salt in food.
Look at the amount of sodium listed, then multiply it by the number of servings in a pack. The results obtained are the total salt intake in a pack of food.
4. Avoid Added Salt When Eating Out
If you are on a no-salt diet, you can ask the waiter not to recommend foods that contain salt.
Most chefs familiar with salt-free diets can make meals out of fresh meat and vegetables to fit within your dietary criteria.
You can also avoid sprinkling salt on food.
5. Enrich the Taste With Spices
Salt does add flavor to food. On a salt-free diet, you can use various spices as an alternative
You can try various herbs and spices, such as:
- garlic Powder,
- red onions and onions,
- lime,
- curry powder,
- parsley,
- lemongrass,
- hazelnut, or
- coriander.
Seasonings and spices have a variety of phytonutrients or compounds typical of plants.
These compounds help reduce inflammation in the body, are antioxidants, and have the potential to control blood sugar.
No Salt Diet Menu Options
You can consume fresh food without added salt while on a salt-free diet. Most importantly, make sure you meet your daily intake of carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, and minerals.
The following is an example of a diet food menu that you can consume.
- Fresh vegetables such as spinach, carrots, broccoli, and lettuce.
- Fresh fruits include oranges, bananas, and apples.
- Side dishes such as spiced chicken breast, tofu, tempeh, and fish.
- staple foods like brown rice, oatmeal, or boiled potatoes.
You need to know, to reduce fermented vegetables, such as pickles. The process of fermenting pickles requires a brine soak which can derail your diet. As much as possible, reduce the use of processed meat or canned vegetables because both use salt as a preservative.
Is it True that Can Help You Lose Weight?
There has been no research specifically on the effects of consuming foods without salt on body weight. However, for a long time, researchers have revealed that reducing salt intake can help people lose weight temporarily.
Salt is a molecule that makes your body retain water. When you reduce salt intake, the water retained in the body will come out, which causes body weight to decrease. You need to know that a high salt intake usually contains no less than high levels of fat, sugar, and flour.
When you reduce your salt intake, you usually reduce these three ingredients so that they are similar to a low-calorie diet. This also causes weight loss.
Potential Benefits
Going on a no-salt diet may not be the best method for losing weight. However, reducing salt intake can provide the following benefits.
1. Balancing Body Fluids
Sodium in salt is an electrolyte that the body needs. As discussed earlier, too much sodium makes the body retain too much water. Consumption of food without salt can balance the amount of fluid in the body.
2. Reducing the Risk of Heart Disease
One of the dangers of excess salt is that it triggers high blood pressure or hypertension. Hypertension can cause various heart diseases, such as strokes, heart attacks, and heart failure. Limiting salt intake can reduce the amount of water pressing on blood vessels, so that blood pressure decreases.
3. Maintain Bone Density
A salt-free diet helps keep bones strong. Excess sodium intake turns out to make calcium wasted through urine. This can reduce bone density.
In addition, hypertension due to foods high in salt causes calcium to be lost from the bones more quickly, so you are prone to osteoporosis.
4. Reducing the Risk of Stomach Cancer
Quoting a study published by Frontiers in Nutrition (2021), a salt-free diet can reduce the risk of stomach cancer. High salt intake can damage the protective lining of the stomach, causing injury. If it happens continuously, inflammation will always appear and can cause cancer.
Side Effects
Foods without salt can increase the risk of hyponatremia or sodium deficiency in the blood. Symptoms are similar to dehydration, namely:
- nausea and vomiting,
- headache,
- dizzy,
- confusion,
- tired, and
- weak muscles.
In more severe cases, there are possible fatal effects, namely swelling of the brain resulting in shock, coma, and death. However, severe hyponatremia usually results from diuretic medications, kidney problems, or severe diarrhea and vomiting.
Limiting salt intake is important for maintaining health. However, a no-salt diet must be carried out under the supervision of a doctor or nutritionist.
Determining the right diet by consulting an expert is very important to adjust your diet and health conditions.
