Spice Up Your Meals Without Over Using Salt

High blood pressure or hypertension is one of the largest hazards to the health of most Americans. Not only does excessive salt intake effect your diet it also has a huge impact on your wallet that you may spend on health care. According to the American Journal of Health, about $18 Billion in health care dollars could be save annually.

With a diet of fast foods, frozen foods, snacks and quick to prepare foods most of us are killing ourselves with sodium. A healthy salt intake of one teaspoon per day which equals 2,300 mg of sodium is all that is required per day.

We all need to learn to put away the salt shaker and develop a taste for foods with less salt. Many spices and herbs will offer unique flavors to your food and provide other health benefits.

Chili powder added to power up the taste beans and Mexican food offers a boost to your metabolism and fights viruses.

Oregano most popular in Italian foods and tomato recipes fights viruses and fungi, such as Candida.

Turmeric gives that pretty yellow to curry powder is excellent for fighting inflammation and other diseases including cancer. Added to your foods daily will also help with weight loss.

Rosemary is used to season chicken, fish and lamb is great to enhance your mood and memory. It also helps ease symptoms of Asthma.

Cinnamon can be served in hot chocolate, coffee, cookies, breads, fruit and a variety of other foods. Cinnamon is excellent to control blood sugar.

Garlic, the pungent taste that is excellent served oven roasted, or added to meat dishes and breads offers a healthy boost to your immune system and protects your heart and liver.

Sage offers that special flavor in dressings, chicken, turkey and fish. Sage offers improvement of mood and increases mental function.

Basil added to beef, chicken soups or bread is what you need to fight inflammation of joints and to promote relaxation.

You may want to consider trying new recipes and adding spices a little at a time to help your family develop a taste for them. When cooking omit the salt, and fill the salt shaker with sea salt for the family to use sparingly at the table. Sea salt is best because it offers minerals that are not present in ordinary table salt.