Salt can aggravate high blood pressure. If you have high blood pressure, it is important that you reduce your salt intake.

The current dietary recommendation is no more than 2,400 milligrams of salt and sodium per day. Your doctor may recommend even less salt in your diet. Recent research has shown that people who consumed 1,500 milligrams of salt per day had even better results in lowering their blood pressure.

Reducing your salt intake is no easy task. Many prepared foods contain large amounts of salt. For example, a one-cup individual serving of a typical canned soup can have up to 1,000 milligrams of salt.

To reduce salt in your diet, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute recommends:

• Buy fresh, plain frozen, or canned “with no salt added” vegetables.
  
• Use fresh poultry, fish, and lean meat, rather than canned or processed types.
  
• Use herbs, spices, and salt-free seasoning blends in cooking and at the table.
  
• Cook rice, pasta, and hot cereals without salt. Cut back on instant or flavored rice, past, and cereal mixes with added salt.
  
• Choose “convenience” foods that are lower in salt. Cut back on frozen dinners, pizza, packaged mixes, canned soups or broths, and salad dressings that often have a lot of salt.
  
• Rinse canned foods, such as tuna, to remove some salt.
  
• When available, buy low- or reduced-sodium, or no-salt-added versions of foods.
  
• Choose ready-to-eat breakfast cereals that are lower in salt.

Source: “Your Guide to Lowering High Blood Pressure,” National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, www.nhlbi.nih.gov/hbp/.