Most authorities, and many dietitians/nutritionists, recommend people not use salt at the table or the stove. I have found that this is precisely the wrong approach. Most of the sodium we eat (77%) is in the food as we buy it—mostly processed/packaged and restaurant foods. The remaining 23% is about evenly split between naturally occurring sodium and that which we add at the stove/table.

So when it is recommended that people stop using salt at the stove/table, how much does that affect your sodium intake? Very little (about 10%). All the while, you as the consumer, are left believing that you’re doing something good for yourself and that you have complete control over your sodium intake, when actually you do not. If you’re buying mostly processed/packaged foods (out of convenience and ease) from food industry giants like Campbells, Kraft, Prego, Stouffers (this includes LEAN CUISINE) to control your sodium intake, you’re not doing much at all. Even if you don’t salt your food at the table, you’re getting more salt in your diet than you should.

Let’s return the control back to YOU, the consumer. I recommend that you buy as much unprocessed, whole, and/or reduced sodium foods as possible and salt those foods YOURSELF. Even if you buy a bland, low-sodium soup or pasta sauce, you can add your own salt (along with other herbs and spices to further cut back on the use of salt). Then, over time, slowly reduce the salt you add to those unprocessed, whole foods, allowing time for the tastebuds to adjust. Who’s in control now? That’s right it’s YOU, not the food industry giants that have absolutely no concern about your health and welfare.

And as for the GREEN and COMPASSIONATE living moral to this story: Buying unprocessed, whole foods will, in turn, mean that you’re buying foods with less packaging (good for the environment), and you’re most likely buying more fruits and vegetables and eating a more plant-based diet (good for you AND the environment).