Sodium in Foods

Sodium is a naturally occurring element found in water, soil, and plants. Sodium is essential to health with an estimated adult daily requirement of 500 milligrams (mg). Most of a person’s sodium consumption comes from the food supply. The Food and Drug Administration has estimated that American adults consume between 4,000 and 6,000 mg of sodium daily in their diet. Approximately 75 percent of the sodium in the diet is from sodium added during food manufacturing and processing and 15 percent from salt added by the consumer.

Sensitive individuals can begin to detect sodium in water at a concentration of about 30 milligrams per liter of water (mg/l), but higher concentrations are required for detection by the majority of the population. For example, the World Health Organization (WHO) has a guideline of 200 mg/l for sodium in water based on taste. Water temperature and other dissolved minerals affect the ability to recognize sodium in water. Additionally, the sensitivity of taste buds to sodium declines with age.

Sodium Equivalent
Items	Sodium Content (mg)
Sugar	Negligible
Table Salt (sodium chloride)
1 teaspoon = 5 grams	2000
¼ teaspoon (scant, 1.5 gm)	500
1/8 teaspoon	250
Baking Soda (sodium bicarbonate)
1 level teaspoon	1000
Fish Sauce (patis), 1 teaspoon	540
MSG (monosodium glutamate)
1 teaspoon	492
¼ teaspoon (scant)	160-180
Baking Powder, 1 level teaspoon	370

Health Effects of High-Sodium Intake

Short Term (Acute) Effects (infants and adults):

• Nausea 

• Vomiting 

• Confusion

• Stomach ulcers and inflammation 

• Dehydration of organs 

• Convulsions 

• Coma 

**Very high concentrations of sodium accidentally given to formula-fed infants have caused a few deaths.

Long Term (Chronic) Effects:

• High blood pressure 

• Heart disease 

• Stroke

• Congestive heart failure

Sodium is completely absorbed after ingestion. Infants and young children are more sensitive than adults to high sodium because their immature kidneys are unable to control the levels in the body as are adults. Those with impaired kidney function are also a more sensitive population for the same reason. Older adults may be considered more sensitive to some of sodium’s effects because blood pressure tends to rise with age and heart-related illness is more common.

References:

Healing Wonders of Diet Effective Guide to Diet Therapy p.243 © 2003 Philippine Publishing House ISBN 971-581-013-6
http://des.nh.gov/organization/commissioner/pip/factsheets/ard/documents/ard-ehp-21.pdf Sodium: Health Information Summary Retrieved on May 2, 2011