Halt the Salt: 9 simple ways to reduce your sodium intake

Replace toast or a bagel with a bowl of muesli with only a pinch of salt for breakfast. Skip the evening bread basket in favour of a meal of nutritious grains like barley, brown rice, farro, or quinoa.

Instead of eating pizza full of salty ingredients, try to make it at home using a whole-wheat, pre-baked pizza crust with low-sodium pizza sauce.

Fill your sandwich with vegetables like tomato, avocado, and lettuce. Instead of cheese, try hummus or peanut butter with sliced apple or banana.

Cook your own fresh chicken or turkey breast for sandwiches because processed meats are rich in sodium chloride (salt) and include sodium nitrate as a preservative.

Avoid canned soup; some kinds contain up to 940 mg of salt per serving.

Go for low-sodium cheese, or replace other cheeses with tiny amounts of finely grated, savoury hard cheeses like Parmesan or Romano.

Use condiments such as salad dressings, ketchup, barbecue sauce, and hot sauce sparingly. And go easy on the "fixins" and salty side dishes like pickles, pickled veggies, olives, and sauerkraut.

Instead of salt or salty seasonings like soy sauce, spice blends, or soup mixes, use herbs, spices, lemon, lime, vinegar, or salt-free seasoning blends to boost flavour.

Read the Nutrition Facts on food packages to determine salt amounts and choose "low," "reduced-sodium," or "no-salt-added" varieties of foods.