Miranda Huffman, MD, Family Medicine physician at MetroSouth Medical Center in Blue Island and Alsip, Illinois, shows viewers practical tips to reduce sodium in their diet.
Recently, the Agriculture and Health and Human Services department updated the latest dietary guidelines for all Americans. Most notably, Americans over the age of 50, African Americans, or those with high blood pressure, diabetes or chronic kidney disease are urged to reduce their salt intake to a mere ½ teaspoon per day. Collectively, the new rules impact about half of the U.S. population.
This new mandate will require a major shift in the diet for the aforementioned populations. Today, Americans, on average consumer approximately 3,400 milligrams of salt each day, which is equal to 1-1/2 teaspoons. In order to meet the new guidelines, salt intake will need to be reduced by more than half of current levels.
Unfortunately, reducing salt in-take is not as easy as putting away the salt shaker. An estimated 77 percent of a person’s daily sodium intake comes from pre-packaged and processed foods. In this video, Dr. Huffman shows strategies to avoid prepackaged mixes with high salt content.
Why should adults monitor their salt intake? Too much salt can lead to high blood pressure which is a significant risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Heart disease is by far the leading cause of death in the U.S., accounting for about 26 percent of all deaths. Stroke is America’s #3 killer and a leading cause of severe, long-term disability.
According to Dr. Miranda Huffman, “managing high blood pressure is one of the most important things Americans can do to lessen their risk of heart disease and stroke. Of the 50 million Americans, or 30.5% of the adult population, with hypertension, almost one third evade diagnosis and only one fourth receive effective treatment.”
The evasiveness of detecting high blood pressure is due to the lack of symptoms that present. “Without proactively monitoring your blood pressure through regular check-ups and visits, high blood pressure can easily go unnoticed” explains Dr. Huffman. Controlling salt intake is one simple step to get blood pressure back under control. The American Medical Association estimates that 150,000 lives could be saved in the United States annually if people cut their salt intake in half.
High blood pressure has been shown to damage the body’s arteries. Weakened and diseased arteries can put someone at a much higher risk of heart attack and stroke. Patients with high blood pressure, or hypertension, are at risk of developing a build-up of plaque in their arteries. Narrowed arteries resulting from this plaque build-up may prevent sufficient blood from flowing to the heart, brain and other parts of the body.
To make an appointment with a family medicine or primary care physician at MetroSouth Medical Center, with offices in Blue Island, Alsip, Morgan Park and Beverly, call 708 489-7925 or email info@metrosouthmedicalcenter.com.
