salt

I was tired and hungry last night, and stopped at the grocery store around 7:30 p.m. to pick up dinner. Now usually I eat by 7 p.m., mostly because sticking to an eating schedule helps fend off getting too hungry and eating too much.

But last night I knew I wouldn't eat until 8 or 8:30 p.m., which made me very aware of the portion of my dinner. Could I handle making pasta and keeping left overs? Probably not. So I turned to something I normally don't eat -- frozen meals.

I was pleasantly surprised by Amy's frozen cheese enchiladas. I was craving melted cheese -- and it was so yummy! But at 350 calories, It didn't really fill me up. Even with salad and fruit. So I also ate a frozen corn dot (150 calories) and topped it off with two frozen fudge bars (100 calories). Overall, my daily intake was between 1,800-1,900. Not bad for having run two miles earlier that day.

I felt good about my "healthy" choice. I ate my calorie goal for the day while satisfying my cravings. But then, this morning, my fingers were swollen -- and I realized I ate more than 1,000 mg of sodium for dinner.

Now that's probably typical for most adults in America. But I eat mostly fresh and homemade food, I never add salt to a dish, and I actually steer clear of high-salt food. Domino's pizza? No thanks, I'll make my own. French fries? Maybe a few off a friend's plate, but I'll order fruit. Canned soup? Always low-sodium, but I prefer homemade.

Low salt intake has served me well. I passed my last blood pressure measurement with glowing colors: 100/60. And my distaste for salt has helped me steer clear of unhealthy fast-food, like delivery pizza and fries.

Which leads me to wonder, can I eat frozen foods without abandoning the benefits of my low-salt diet? With my hectic schedule, it was so nice popping the meal into the microwave and eating it 5 minutes later. But at what cost?

I think I'll keep some frozen meals in my fridge as healthy back-ups -- but I'll try not to eat them, like I did last night, with other high-sodium food.