Study: Hidden Salt Lurks in Bagels, Cereal, Low-Fat Foods
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Harmful amounts of sodium can be found in unsalty foods such as breakfast cereal and bagels, according to Consumer Reports magazine.
The group's analysis of 37 food products found a cup of Kellogg's Raisin Bran contains 350 milligrams of sodium, a half-cup of one brand of low-fat cottage cheese had 360 mg, and a Pepperidge Farm Whole Grain White Bagel carried 440 mg.
U.S. dietary guidelines recommend that healthy adults get no more than 2,300 mg of sodium a day and to control high blood pressure people should aim for 1,500 mg or less.
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Most Americans get far more than that, and mostly not in salt sprinkled on food but instead in prepared products.
"Our analysis found that lower-fat products might be higher in sodium. That's in part because when fat is taken out of full-fat foods, sodium is sometimes used to compensate for flavor," Jamie Hirsh, associate health editor at Consumer Reports, said in a statement.
Besides sodium chloride — better known as table salt — sodium can be found in food additives such as disodium guanylate, disodium inosinate, sodium caseinate, sodium benzoate, sodium bicarbonate and sodium nitrite.
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Prego "Heart Smart Traditional" Italian Sauce contains 430 mg of salt in a half-cup serving, even if it is low in fat. "Heart Healthy" V8 vegetable juice has 480 mg in a serving, according to the report released on Monday.