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About Sodium
 Sodium can raise your risk for, or worsen your high blood pressure. High blood pressure is also a risk factor for vascular diseases such as abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) or PAD. Everyone should aim for less than one teaspoon of salt per day. This is about 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day. If you already have high blood pressure, you should eat even less. The best rule of thumb is to avoid adding salt to foods during cooking or at the table.
When reading food labels for sodium, look for "unsalted," "no salt added," or "without added salt."
Avoid foods high in sodium:
- Canned, frozen, and pre-packaged foods
- Meat, fish, and poultry canned with added salt or smoked
- Luncheon meats, chipped beef, corned beef, sausages, and jerky
- Processed cheese and cheese spreads
- Pickled foods
- Salted soy nuts, nuts
- Commercial salad dressings, gravies, spreads, and sauces
- Commercially cultured buttermilk
- Snack chips, commercially canned soups, dried soup mixes, broth, and bouillon
Look for foods with no or low sodium:
- Fresh fruits and vegetables
- Fresh or frozen chicken, turkey, fish, beef, pork, lamb, veal, and wild game
- Tofu (unsalted)
- Skim milk (1% or 2% butterfat) and yogurt
- Potatoes, rice, and pasta
- No-salt-added canned tomato products
- Herbs, spices, salt-free herb/ spice mixes (Mrs. Dash), garlic powder, onion powder, no-salt-added ketchup, and lemon juice
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