Big Salt Wants You!

It's been while since I've gotten on the blog soapbox. It's easier at times to just write about ways to incorporate healthy food into your diet. But whenever I hear that a multinational company is going on an offensive to maintain its false appearance of caring about consumers' health, I need to write a rant.

You've probably been hearing bad things about salt; in the media, from your doctor. But if we buy less salt, then the "poor" companies who produce salt will lose profits. That's why one of the latest grocery trends is to sell you "exotic salts", to make sure you keep buying their product. Even members of my own family, with whom we've discussed the perils of too much sodium in the diet, once again have salt on the table. "It's sea salt! Good for you!"

No salt - other than a very tiny amount each day - is good for you. We don't eat it in nature, it poisons our palate and keeps us coming back for more, and it's everywhere. Unless you make your own food from morning 'til night, do not put salt in your food. I can assure you, it's already there in dangerous amounts. You should consume less than 1 teaspoon total salt each day. All processed foods contain salt, so check your labels. You may be eating far above the recommended total of 1800 mg each day.

But do take a look at this article which exposes the manipulative Cargill company for trying to win back our salty loyalties. Or rather, our pocketbooks. You may recall, this is the same Cargill that tried to defend its honourable reputation after its tainted frozen burgers killed people.

The NYTimes.com article really exposes how the food companies care most about making large profits, and having low expenses: "Making deep cuts in salt can require more expensive ingredients that can hurt sales. ".

The food manufacturers also want to hook you on their products and make sure you cannot ever do without them: “Once a preference is acquired,” a top scientist at Frito-Lay wrote in a 1979 internal memorandum, “most people do not change it, but simply obey it.”

Examples like this one are terrifying; the manufacturer explains how when they remove salt from their food, it turns out to taste horrible: “Salt really changes the way that your tongue will taste the product,” Mr. Kepplinger [V.P. of Kellogg] said. “You make one little change and something that was a complementary flavor now starts to stand out and become objectionable.” Makes you wonder what they are feeding us in those shiny boxes. In my nutrition schooling, we read of lab rats who lived longer off the boxes which processed cereal came in, than actually eating the cereal, where they died within weeks.

Read and be forewarned. I see a not-too-distant future where we are all cultivating our own gardens, and by extension our own true health.

Making Store-Bought Soup Baby-Friendly

In the winter I used to make a lot of soup but now that I have 2 small mouths to feed (one of which is very picky) I will often buy soups in a box. Or Amy's canned soups. As I've discussed before, many soups are very high in sodium. This is a real problem because our collective taste buds are being trained to equate salty with flavourful. There are a number of ways to cut back on the sodium: watering down the soups, cooking them with slices of potato which will absorb the salt, adding in extra vegetables. But when the baby and I are sharing a bowl for lunch, I find the quickest way of cutting the sodium is to add plain yogurt. The soup becomes creamier and less salty all at once. Those who know me know that I abhor low-fat anything, so I am talking about regular plain yogurt, at leas 3%, but 5% and up is even better.

Do As I Do

Now that my Bug is getting to the toddler stage, she can eat more than just mush. So the good news is that she wants to eat what I'm eating. Right off my plate. Yay! I don't have to concoct special meals for her! But also: Boo! I have to share my food. The most important thing to me, though, is ensuring she's getting very high quality food and this has caused me to take a good look at what I'm putting on my fork each night.

On the weekend we went to Whole Foods and I lazily bought some prepared food. Sesame Tofu was good but a bit too chewy for her. I had to cut off the outside bits. And hey....was it cooked in oil? Hmm. I thought I always read the ingredients on foods I purchased but I am a serious label-reader now. Also I had Broccoli Bites on our lunch menu. These are breaded broccoli and cheese nuggets. I had to admit they're a bit processed after all. And finally, my favourite Amy's Soups which I've now discovered contain tons of salt. I just thought they were naturally yummy, but before doling some out to Bug, I noticed the too-high sodium levels on the label and added water and some plain veggie puree to hers. Thankfully, today I discovered that Amy's offers low-sodium versions of some of their soups.

Having and raising a baby has forced me to be even healthier than usual but now that we are eating together I'm really challenged to walk the talk. It's a bit more work but I'm thankful for this excuse and happy to know I'm giving my little one the best foundation from which to grow. And I've resolved to eat my cheat foods in the closet, out of sight!