If you've been told to "watch your salt" for high blood pressure, you've probably found that advice frustratingly vague. How much salt? Which foods? And how would you even know if cutting back is helping? The honest answer is that you can't manage what you can't see — so the trick is to track two things together: the sodium going in, and your blood pressure over time.
Here's a practical guide to both.
How much sodium is too much?
The American Heart Association recommends no more than 2,300 mg of sodium per day — about one teaspoon of salt — and moving toward an ideal limit of 1,500 mg per day for most adults, especially those with high blood pressure.
The encouraging part: you don't have to hit the ideal overnight to benefit. The AHA notes that cutting even 1,000 mg a day can improve blood pressure and heart health. Small, steady reductions count.
Good to know: The DASH eating pattern (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) pairs lower sodium with more vegetables, fruit, whole grains, beans, nuts, and low-fat dairy. It's one of the most studied eating patterns for blood pressure.
Where sodium actually hides
Most people picture the salt shaker — but that's a small part of the problem. According to the American Heart Association, more than 70% of the sodium we eat comes from packaged, processed, and restaurant foods, not from salting at the table.
That's actually good news, because it means the biggest wins come from label-reading and swaps, not from feeling deprived at dinner. The usual culprits:
- Breads and rolls (small amounts add up fast across the day)
- Deli meats and cured meats
- Soups, sauces, and canned goods
- Pizza, sandwiches, and most restaurant meals
- Salty snacks and many "savory" packaged foods
Pro tip: Compare labels and pick the lower-sodium version of the same item. Switching one high-sodium bread or sauce for a lighter one can quietly cut hundreds of milligrams a day with zero willpower required.
Know your blood pressure numbers
Sodium is the input; blood pressure is the result you actually care about. A reading has two numbers — systolic (the top, pressure when the heart beats) over diastolic (the bottom, pressure at rest). The American Heart Association groups readings into these categories:
- Normal: less than 120 and less than 80
- Elevated: 120–129 and less than 80
- Hypertension Stage 1: 130–139 or 80–89
- Hypertension Stage 2: 140 or higher or 90 or higher
- Hypertensive Crisis: higher than 180 and/or higher than 120 — seek medical care
One high reading isn't a diagnosis — blood pressure moves around throughout the day. What matters is the trend across many readings, which is exactly why logging them is so useful.
How to track sodium and blood pressure together
The reason to keep both in one place is simple: it lets you connect the dots. When you can see your sodium trending down and your blood pressure following over a few weeks, you know your changes are working. Here's how to set it up in PureLog.
1. Turn on your Heart Health focus
In the Settings tab, find Health Focus and turn on Heart Health ("Cholesterol, saturated fat & heart-healthy nutrients"). This brings sodium, saturated fat, cholesterol, and fiber to the front of your dashboard.
2. Set your sodium limit
In Settings → Edit Profile, set your Sodium Limit (mg) — for example 2,300 or 1,500, or whatever your doctor advises. The dashboard will then track every meal against that number.
3. Log your food
Sodium is captured on every food you log. Manual Entry and Search Food are free; Scan Barcode and Scan Nutrition Label are Premium conveniences that pull sodium straight off the package — handy given how much sodium hides in processed foods.
4. Watch your sodium at a glance
Your Today's Summary tile for sodium shows amount / limit with a colored bar — green when you're comfortably under, yellow as you approach your limit, red once you're nearly over. No mental math required.
5. Log your blood pressure
Go to the Health tab, find Vitals, and tap Blood Pressure. Enter your systolic and diastolic numbers and the app shows a live category badge (Normal, Elevated, Stage 1, and so on) color-coded as you type. You can backdate a reading and add a note.
6. Look for the trend
Open the Blood Pressure detail view to see your readings charted over a week, month, or longer, with your average, high, and low. Pair that with your sodium history and you can actually see whether eating less salt is moving your numbers.
A simple weekly routine
- Set a sodium limit and treat it like a budget you spend through the day.
- Read labels before buying packaged foods; pick the lower-sodium version of the same item.
- Take your blood pressure at the same time of day, a few times a week, and log it.
- Every couple of weeks, compare your sodium trend to your blood pressure trend — and bring both to your next appointment.
Watch out: A tracking app is an awareness tool, not a medical device or a substitute for your doctor. Don't change blood-pressure medication based on app readings, and check any home monitor against your clinic's from time to time.
The bottom line
Lowering sodium for blood pressure isn't about bland food or willpower — it's about knowing your target, spotting where sodium hides, and watching whether your changes actually move the needle. Track the sodium going in and the blood pressure coming out, give it a few weeks, and let the trend tell you what's working.