What do the sodium (salt) numbers mean on food labels?

The government created rules back in the 1980s for nutrition information labeling on packaged foods. Before the regulations were passed, the only information required was a listing of the ingredients in the package, in order from the largest amount to the smallest amount. Other than that, we were pretty much on our own, and had to guess how much of something might or might not be in any particular food. Fortunately, it’s a bit easier now.

Even so, reading a food label can be a bit of a challenge because of all the different numbers one is faced with. For sodium, the percentages listed on packages are based on a total daily intake of 2,400 milligrams (mg). This is a much lower sodium intake than most of us are eating today, with the average American consuming between 4,000 and 6,000 mg per day. Some estimates place that intake much higher - in the 10,000 mg per day range for western diets (that’s ten GRAMS of sodium).

While the percentage values are helpful, it’s best to use them only as a guideline. The key numbers are those that show the amount of sodium in milligrams.

Even though we have much better research on this now, it turns out that the guideline of 2,400 mg was a pretty good target. For those simply trying to eat healthier the American Heart Association recommends 2,300 mg per day (this is about the amount in a teaspoon of salt). Most physicians have their patients with conditions such as Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) and hypertension eat less, however, with a target of 1,500 mg.

I have found with informal testing of recipes that keeping the sodium levels above 300 mg for a main course dish is about the level that most people find “salty enough.”

The best way to approach this is to divide your day into meals with targets at breakfast and lunch under 500 mg sodium and dinner under 1,000 mg in total. Look at the Nutrition Facts on any package of food and add the total milligrams of sodium for the foods that you are eating.