Cutting Sodium and SUgar intake

[Traymond]

What foods can I eat that are low sodium and low sugar thats affordable and thats easy to snack on.

Im looking for stuff thats high in protein and filling.

I need to remove some sodium and ALOT of the sugar in my diet. I dont drink pop, and I dont eat alot of candies, but their are alot of other foods that are salty....and sugary.

[Tiger1962]

What I have done is to get into the habit of reading labels. I know it's annoying, and it takes me extra long to shop for groceries, because now I'm reading everything, but that's just what you have to do to be 100% certain.

Ok, I Googled this and here's a list of foods I've found that match the criteria, but again, I strongly suggest you read the nutritional content on all foods:

Greek yogurt (Fa-ge, Oikos, Chobani - these are a few brands I know of)

Any lowfat dairy

Unsalted nuts

Chicken breast

Beans (real ones not canned)

Obviously lean meat

Quinoa

Unsalted nuts

Cottage Cheese

Tofu

Broccoli

Spinach

These are just a few. A lot of foods have sugar, whether naturally or added, so again, you just have to read the label to be certain.

[Traymond]

Thanks much Tiger.

I never heard of Greek Yogurt ima have to look into that haha.

But I love tofu so thats good.

Thanks again.

[FitOrDie]

Natural foods, just check the labels. Some pre-prepared meats have a lot of sodium in them, so get regular meats. As far as sugar goes, if you eat the paleo-foods (meats, vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, no sugar) you will be fine. You can even throw in a little (emphasize that word) bread or something.

Don't be afraid of the sugar that's in fruit, fructose is a natural form of it, and it's good for you, unless you eat a ton, which is hard to do.

Think about it this way- if you can't eat it raw, and it's not meat, you probably don't want to eat it. If it isn't real food, found in nature, or at least found in ancient people's diets (any kind of packaged snack, for example), you almost surely don't want to eat it.

[Traymond]

What about rice that has alot of the starch washed off of it?

is that ok?

And thanks also Fit

[Tiger1962]

Brown rice is good however if you are willing to, eating these grains: quinoa, cous-cous, barley and similar grains are more nutrient-efficient than rice.

Craving a potato? Try eating a sweet potato instead of a regular one. Again, similar idea but more nutritious plus it may satisfy a sweet tooth without actually eating candy or desserts.

Watch out for starchy foods, because starches break down into sugars, so if you are diabetic, you have to be aware of that too.

P.S. The Greek yogurt I typed called Fa-ge doesn't really have a hyphen in its name but for some reason this website recognized it as a bad word and wouldn't let me type it without the hyphen. LOL

[Traymond]

Haha thanks again, and I will definately try the cous cous and barley...I love sweet potatoes haha.

Thanks again.

[Greenfire54]

these are all great tips. but make sure that you dont cut sodium out of your diet all together. sodium is a must have for vital muscle and nerve functions to work. Without sodium, your body will run low on electrolytes which will cause you to have twitch and muscle convulsions

[Traymond]

Ahhh I see. I drink about two (40 oz) glasses of power aid a day, do you think that it enough sodium or should I take more?

[DWx]

Ahhh I see. I drink about two (40 oz) glasses of power aid a day, do you think that it enough sodium or should I take more?

Woah. I hope you brush your teeth regularly because that stuff does them no good at all. I think recommended sodium intake is ~2000mg, you wouldn't get that just from powerades... they have hardly any.