June 2021 1

Sodium in Your Diet

Use the Nutrition Facts Label and Reduce Your Intake 

You’ve probably heard that most Americans eat too 

much sodium. Your body needs a small amount of 

sodium to work properly, but too much sodium can 

be bad for your health. Diets higher in sodium are 

associated with an increased risk of developing high 

blood pressure, which is a major cause of stroke and 

heart disease.

Despite what many people think, most dietary sodium 

(over 70%) comes from eating packaged and 

prepared foods—not from table salt added to food 

when cooking or eating. The food supply contains too 

much sodium and Americans who want to consume 

less sodium can have a difficult time doing so. That is 

why the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is working 

with the food industry to make reasonable reductions 

in sodium across a wide variety of foods. Even though 

sodium may already be in many packaged foods when 

you purchase them, you can lower your daily sodium 

intake by using the Nutrition Facts label. 

Look at the Label 

Use the Nutrition Facts label as your tool to make 

informed decisions!

• Know the Daily Value. The Daily Values are reference 

amounts of nutrients to consume or not to exceed 

each day. The Daily Value for sodium is less than 

2,300 milligrams (mg) per day.

• Use % Daily Value (%DV) as a tool. The %DV is 

the percentage of the Daily Value for each nutrient in a 

serving of the food and shows how much of a nutrient 

contributes to a total daily diet.

Use %DV to determine if a serving of the food is high 

or low in sodium and to compare and choose foods to 

get less than 100% DV of sodium each day.

As a general guide: 5% DV or less of sodium per 

serving is considered low, and 20% DV or more of 

sodium per serving is considered high. 

• Pay attention to servings. The nutrition information 

listed on the Nutrition Facts label is usually based 

on one serving of the food. Check the serving size 

and the number of servings you eat or drink to 

determine how much sodium you are consuming.
June 2021 2

Table Salt and Sodium: Defined

The words “table salt” and “sodium” are 

often used interchangeably, but they 

do not mean the same thing. Table 

salt (also known by its chemical name, 

sodium chloride) is a crystal-like 

compound that is abundant in 

nature. Sodium is a mineral, and 

one of the chemical elements 

found in salt. 

Food Choices Matter! 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and 

Prevention (CDC), about 40 percent of the sodium 

consumed by Americans comes from the 

following foods:

• Deli meat sandwiches

• Pizza

• Burritos and tacos

• Soups

• Savory snacks (e.g., chips, crackers, popcorn) 

• Poultry 

• Pasta mixed dishes

• Burgers

• Egg dishes and omelets

But remember, the sodium content can vary 

significantly between similar types of foods. So, use the 

Nutrition Facts label to compare products, and don’t 

forget to check the serving size in order to make an 

accurate comparison.

Sodium as a Food Ingredient

As a food ingredient, sodium has multiple uses, such 

as for curing meat, baking, thickening, retaining 

moisture, enhancing flavor (including the flavor of 

other ingredients), and as a preservative. Some 

common food additives—like monosodium glutamate 

(MSG), sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), sodium 

nitrite, and sodium benzoate—also contain sodium 

and contribute (in lesser amounts) to the total amount 

of “sodium” listed on the Nutrition Facts label. 

Surprisingly, some foods that don’t taste salty can 

still be high in sodium, which is why using taste alone 

is not an accurate way to judge a food’s sodium 

content. For example, while some foods that are high 

in sodium (like pickles and soy sauce) taste salty, 

there are also many foods (like cereals and pastries) 

that contain sodium but don’t taste salty. Also, some 

foods that you may eat several times a day (such as 

breads) can add up to a lot of sodium over the course 

of a day, even though an individual serving may not 

be high in sodium.
June 2021 3

Sodium and Blood Pressure

Sodium attracts water, and a high-sodium diet 

draws water into the bloodstream, which can 

increase the volume of blood and subsequently 

your blood pressure. High blood pressure 

(also known as hypertension) is a condition 

in which blood pressure remains elevated over 

time. Hypertension makes the heart work too 

hard, and the high force of the blood flow can 

harm arteries and organs (such as the heart, 

kidneys, brain, and eyes). Uncontrolled high 

blood pressure can raise the risk of heart 

attack, heart failure, stroke, kidney disease, and 

blindness. In addition, blood pressure generally 

rises as you get older, so limiting your sodium 

intake becomes even more important each year.

Sodium is an essential nutrient and is needed by the body in relatively 

small amounts (provided that substantial sweating does not occur) 

to maintain a balance of body fluids and keep muscles and nerves 

running smoothly. However, most Americans eat too much of it—and 

they may not even know it. 

Americans eat on average about 3,400 mg of sodium per day. However, the 

Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends adults limit sodium intake to 

less than 2,300 mg per day—that’s equal to about 1 teaspoon of table 

salt! For children under age 14, recommended limits are even lower.

Check the Package for Nutrient Claims

You can also check for nutrient claims on food and beverage packages to quickly identify those

that may contain less sodium. Here’s a guide to common claims and what they mean: 

What It Says What It Means

Salt/Sodium-Free Less than 5 mg of sodium per serving

Very Low Sodium 35 mg of sodium or less per serving

Low Sodium 140 mg of sodium or less per serving

Reduced Sodium At least 25% less sodium than the regular product

Light in Sodium or Lightly Salted At least 50% less sodium than the regular product

No-Salt-Added or Unsalted No salt is added during processing – but these products 

may not be salt/sodium-free unless stated

Know Your Numbers
June 2021 4

For more information, contact the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition’s Food and 

Cosmetic Information Center at 1-888-SAFEFOOD (toll free), Monday through Friday 10 AM to 4 PM ET (except Thursdays from 

12:30 PM to 1:30 PM ET and Federal holidays). Or, visit the FDA website at http://www.fda.gov/educationresourcelibrary

10 Easy Tips for Reducing Sodium Consumption

Learning about sodium in foods and exploring new ways to prepare foods can help you achieve your sodium 

goal. And, if you follow these tips to reduce the amount of sodium you consume, your “taste” for sodium will 

gradually decrease over time—so eventually, you may not even miss it! 

1 Read the Nutrition Facts label

 Compare and choose foods to get less than 100% DV (less than 2,300 mg) of sodium each day. 

2 Prepare your own food when you can 

 Limit packaged sauces, mixes, and “instant” products (including flavored rice, instant noodles, and 

ready-made pasta). 

3 Add flavor without adding sodium

 Limit the amount of table salt you add to foods when cooking, baking, or at the table. Try no-salt seasoning 

blends and herbs and spices instead of salt to add flavor to your food.

4 Buy fresh

 Choose fresh meat, poultry, and seafood, rather than processed varieties. Also, check the package 

on fresh meat and poultry to see if salt water or saline has been added. 

5 Watch your veggies

 Buy fresh, frozen (no sauce or seasoning), or low sodium or no-salt-added canned vegetables. 

6 Give sodium the “rinse”

 Rinse sodium-containing canned foods, such as beans, tuna, and vegetables before eating. This removes 

some of the sodium. 

7 “Unsalt” your snacks

 Choose low sodium or no-salt-added nuts, seeds, and snack products (such as chips and pretzels)—or 

have carrot or celery sticks instead. 

8 Consider your condiments

 Sodium in condiments can add up. Choose light or reduced sodium condiments, add oil and vinegar to 

salads rather than bottled dressings, and use only a small amount of seasoning from flavoring packets 

instead of the entire packet. 

9 Reduce your portion size

 Less food means less sodium. Prepare smaller portions at home and consume less when eating out—

choose smaller sizes, split an entrée with a friend, or take home part of your meal. 

10 Make lower-sodium choices at restaurants

 Ask for your meal to be prepared without table salt and request that sauces and salad dressings be served 

“on the side,” then use less of them. You can also ask if nutrition information is available and then choose 

options that are lower in sodium.