High Blood Pressure, Stroke & Salt

Please help me find an answer to my 82-year-old grandmother's problem. She is in the hospital now and her sodium level keeps dropping. Is there something that would cause this depletion? The doctors do not know why her sodium level keeps going down. I believe at present that her level is at 143. Please...

Which diet pop has the least amount of salt in it? I've been drinking four to five cans of diet pop a day. I've read it contains lots of salt. Diet pop contains less than 100 milligrams of sodium per 12-ounce can. That amount of sodium is less than one slice of bread. Diet colas...

My husband is on a low salt diet for high blood pressure. He tells me his food tastes blah. Recently, he has been sprinkling soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce on his meat. Is it all right to use them on his diet? No, soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce are both too high in sodium and...

Is potato sausage high in sodium or calories? Should a person on high blood pressure medication eat potato sausage? Sausage is high-fat meat and contains about 100 calories per ounce and approximately 390 milligrams of sodium per ounce. For a three-ounce serving that equals about 300 calories and 1170 milligrams of sodium. A person with...

I've been using a salt substitute, but it leaves a bitter aftertaste in my mouth. Can you recommend the best tasting salt substitute? Salt substitutes usually contain potassium chloride instead of sodium chloride as found in salt. The salt substitute makes you produce saliva much in the same way salt does. However, the potassium does...

I have high blood pressure and have been on a low salt diet. Can I eat regular canned vegetables if I rinse them off before cooking? No, you should not eat vegetables canned with salt. Also, you cannot rinse the salt off before heating the canned vegetables. I would suggest you buy frozen vegetables but read...

Do you have any idea how much salt is in softened water? We recently had a water softener installed in our house. After watching my husband pour those 40-pound bags of salt in the tank, I began wondering how much salt we are getting in our drinking and cooking water. Softened water is about ten...

Skim milk has more salt than whole or 2% milk. My doctor told me to follow a low salt diet. I like skim milk and need to lose some weight. Should I cut out milk completely? Skim milk contains 7 milligrams more sodium than whole or 2% milk which is not a significant difference. What...

Thank you for responding so soon to my letter about my grandmother's sodium level. I was incorrect about her present count. It is at 123, not 143. I have relayed your suggestions to my mother so she can ask her doctors about testing for certain things. I appreciate your quick response and hope something...

I also would like to know what it is that will make someone who has high blood pressure for their sugar to be up one day and then the next day their sugar may bottom out on them? If your food intake is regulated correctly by diabetes medication (pills or injected insulin), you shouldn't be...