How to Dine Out and Stay Healthy

What these researchers acknowledged about nutriment was pretty impressive, from a (flawed) health perspective. All of these quick breakfasts, lunches, or dinners contained a mean of quite 1,750 milligrams (mg) of sodium.

To put these findings in perspective, consider that the new U.S. government dietary guidelines recommend that an individual consume no quite 1,500 mg of sodium--over an entire day. Would you be shocked if I also told you that over half those 6,500 single meals (57 percent of them) contained more sodium than the 1,500 mg daily supply?

Far an excessive amount of salt

And how much sodium does the physical body require during a day? Only about 500 mg. And yet, the experts estimate that the typical American swallows between 6,900 mg and 9,000 mg of sodium a day.

Since one teaspoon of salt contains roughly 2,000 mg of sodium, this suggests that the typical American is downing up to 4 1/2 teaspoons of salt each and each day! If a high-sodium diet can leave you feeling bloated, what must these folks be feeling?

A hazardous substance

For people sensitive to sodium, like those with a case history of hypertension, people with diabetes, African Americans, and therefore the elderly, the buildup of an excessive amount of salt within the body are often particularly risky--it can, for instance, increase one's chances of getting heart condition, a number one killer. Increase this the very fact that about half the people with the high vital sign aren't even aware that they need hypertension--and, Houston, we have got a drag here.

Consuming less sodium in restaurants

Now that you know that restaurant food especially is laden with piles of sodium, maybe it is time for us all to review the ideas given by the American Heart Association (AHA) to scale back sodium intake when dining out:

Get to understand which foods are low in sodium, and appearance for them on the menu.

Ask for your dish to be prepared without salt.

When you order, be specific about how you would like your food prepared.

Don't add salt to your food. Rather than the salt shaker, reach for the pepperbox.

Ask for fresh lemon and squeeze its juice onto your dish rather than using salt. (Lemon juice goes well with fish and vegetables, for instance .)

And consume less fat also.

As always, we have also got still to keep track of calories and fat when dining out. What should your daily target be for calories and fat? The AHA now recommends that the majority adults, besides limiting their sodium intake to 1,500 mg per day, consume no quite about 2,000 calories and 20 grams of saturated fat (the artery-clogging kind) every day.

Healthy options are possible--even at McDonald's (sort of)

So how are you alleged to navigate the unhealthy meals being dished out by numerous of today's eating establishments? If you discover yourself at a McDonald's, for instance, what are you able to do to remain healthy? The medical and health news publisher WebMD recommends steering beyond the fatty offerings and going with the Egg McMuffin, which totals.

300 calories

12 grams of fat (5 grams of it saturated fat)

2 grams of fiber

protein that ought to assist you to feel satisfied for hours

But... please know that the McMuffin falters within the sodium department, containing because it does a whopping 820 mg of the things or a touch quite half the daily limit of 1,500 mg.

... And even at Burger King (sort of)

In Burger King, you'll choose the Egg and Cheese Croissan'wich, which provides

• 320 calories

• 16 grams fat (7 grams of it saturated)

• 11 g of protein to stay your hunger cornered

Like the McMuffin's, however, the Croissan'wich's sodium content remains too high: 690 mg.

If you're ordering lunch at Burger King, the chicken baguette sandwich will supply you with 350 calories and 5 grams of fat.

A great source of dietary info from restaurants

HealthyDiningfinder may be a website that has teamed up with restaurants and with registered dietitians to assist diners within the U.S. find--and restaurants to serve--food that passes or surpasses an inventory of healthy-eating criteria. The web site shows diners a variety of restaurants in their area that provide tasty, dietitian-approved menu choices, while it inspires the restaurants themselves to supply healthier choices.

The site also provides recommendations on the way to decrease the content and consumption of calories, fat, and sodium. To satisfy HealthyDiningfinder's "Sodium Savvy" criteria, for instance, an entrée can haven't any quite 750 mg of sodium, whereas appetizers, side dishes, and desserts must contain no quite 250 mg.

Playing with HealthyDiningfinder

Here's how I celebrated twiddling with this website:

Go to the search mechanism on HealthyDiningfinder.com, and you will find the search parameters listed during a column down the left-hand side of the page.

Type in your city, state, and postcode. (It's not necessary to enter your exact address .)

Narrow your search to within 5, 10, 15, 20, or 50 miles of your house, counting on how far you're willing to drive for a meal.

Don't bother choosing a "Price Range"--you might also see all the restaurant options available out there.

I clicked on just one "Cuisine" choice at a time--"American/Family"; "Asian/Chinese"; "Italian"; Fast/Quick"; "Mexican"; "Seafood"; "Other"; etc.). By choosing just one category whenever I could keep my search results simple.

Click the "Apply" button after each of your "Cuisine" choices, a note of the results, then return to the search page and unclick your last choice. Choose another cooking that you're curious about and click on "Apply" again. Repeat as long as you would like to stay looking.

I also didn't bother to settle on any of the three Specialties--"Sodium Savvy," "Kids LiveWell," and "Coupons"--because whenever a restaurant popped up within the search results, its specialties were automatically listed below its name and logo.

A couple of surprises

HealthyDiningfinder's search form worked pretty much on my behalf, although it presented me with a few surprises. A Hooters restaurant here in Baltimore, for instance, proudly listed 7 "Healthy Dining Options"--who knew? And once I searched "Seafood," not one restaurant turned up, even once I extended the obtain to 50 miles. I even have to assume that the "Seafood" category wasn't functioning, since I sleep in Baltimore, a city that sits right the Chesapeake Bay and is world-renowned for its piscine delights. Oh--that jogs my memory of 1 further step:

8. At some point in your search, make certain to click on the last category, "Other." once I finally got around to searching it, several seafood places did pop up--although none was a Baltimore great.

The point is, with touch planning and, therefore, the help of HealthyDiningfinder, you'll indeed find healthy meals once you eat out.