Nutrition and sodium levels in food are a concern for anyone but particularly when you are ill or caring for someone with special dietary needs. With chemotherapy, my Mom's tastes changed - she wanted nothing that was too salty or sweet and currently my husband is on a low sodium-diabetic diet.
This makes life interesting when going shopping at the supermarket.
According to Health Canada, you're to look for foods with less than 360 mg of sodium in a serving or 15% of the Daily Value and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency states that foods containing 140 mg or less may be labeled as low sodium. Some of the words to look for are "No Salt Added", "Sodium Reduced", "Low in Sodium" and "Salt Free"
Make sure to read the nutrition labels because sometimes when they cut the salt they add sugar.
I have found these products in NoFrills, FreshCo, Loblaws, Grocery Gateway, and Metro but unfortunately not all in the same place.
I'll be updating this list periodically when I find new things that are low sodium so check back every so often.
Breads
There was a press release in February of 2012 by the CDC on hidden sources of salt in foods and bread was near the top of the list. I had figured this out a couple of years previous while trying to find a type of bread that was low in salt for Mom.
Some good brands are Rudolph's Bakery, some of Dimpflmeier Bakery's and apparently there is a new line of breads by Dempster's called Healthy Way that has 110 mg of sodium per slice. Dempster's also has a sodium counter on their site.( I've not seen the Dempster's in my stores yet but hopefully soon.) I had also found a bread that had about 95 mg of salt per slice but I've forgotten the brand . I'll let you know what it was when I find it again.
Update: The bread that has 95 mg of sodium per slice is the Rigsky Bread from All Stars Bakery and their Baltic Rye Bread has 80 mg of sodium per slice.
I'll just say this, Rye breads, for whatever reason, seem to be one of the lower sodium options out there that are available in the supermarket.
Salt Substitutes
Mrs. Dash original and garlic and herb blends are a staple in my kitchen but I wish I could find her marinades in the store (They're available online from http://healthyheartmarket.com/ and they ship internationally). I also use Club House No Salt Steak Spice ( I like it on my eggs) and a product called NoSalt which is potassium chloride (no good if you're on a potassium restricted diet).
Loblaws Blue Menu no salt added Sun-dried Tomato and Herb (my new favorite)
A.Vogel Herbamare Sodium Free Again potassium chloride but infused with 14 herbs and vegetables
Butter/Margarine
Unsalted butter and Becel's unsalted margarine
Bacon
Lou's Quick and Easy Traditional Slice (140 mg sodium per 100 g serving - way less than even sodium reduced bacon) It's kind of like peameal bacon without the cornmeal and cooks in 2 minutes.
Canned Goods
Clover Leaf low sodium Tuna and Salmon, Eden Organic no salt added beans, refried beans, vegetables and tomatoes,
Campbell's no salt added broths,
Condiments
Kozlick's Canadian Mustards a little pricey (and delicious) but only 35 mg sodium per 5 ml or 1% of the Daily Value for the XXX variety (they have over 30 types and they can be bought online), Heinz Easy Squeeze low sodium ketchup, Loblaws Blue Menu Low Sodium Ketchup Style Sauce , Kikkoman Sodium reduced soy sauce, Hellman's Mayonnaise (95 mg per tablespoon) and Kraft no sugar, no salt peanut butter (tastes like regular Kraft peanut butter and no stirring). Liquid Smoke This stuff is great-it adds a barbecue flavor to anything you put it in.
Cheeses
Unfortunately there is not a lot of choices out there. Cracker Barrel used to make a low sodium cheddar but they stopped, probably due to costs and no one knowing about it (I only saw it once at a Metro years ago) But there are some options such as Swiss cheese, Bocconcini and fresh Mozzarella in water. Some brands are better than others just make sure to read the labels.
Cereals
Puffed rice, Quaker Harvest Crunch, Alpine Muesli, and Cheerio's Multi Grain, Multigrain Spooners Frosted (only 1 mg of sodium and 9 mg of sugars)
Snacks
Lay's Chips lightly salted, Hunt's Snack Pack Lemon Meringue Pie, and Dole Fruit Bowl in Gel, Triscuit Low Sodium Roasted Garlic and Herb (50 mg Sodium), Dare Breaktime Ginger Cookies (65 mg of Sodium)
Beverages
Ovaltine Chocolate Has 25 mg of sodium and 13 g of carbohydrates of which only 8 g are Sugars
Carnation Hot Chocolate Marshmallow High in Sugars (19 g) but has 40 mg of sodium per 3 Tbsp
Miscellaneous
Manischewitz Matzo Farfel Basically unleavened crushed crackers that can be used for breading or stuffing and has 0 mg of sodium per 1/4 cup
Paxo Stuffing this is the lowest sodium box of stuffing that I have found so far, even lower than the reduced sodium Stove Top stuffing.
This list is by no means comprehensive but it goes to show that there are low sodium options available at the local supermarket. Happy Hunting!
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