Federal regulators have issued a new set of dietary guidelines that bluntly urge Americans to eat less food. Among their other recommendations, they encourage people to replace sugary beverages with water, eat more fruits and vegetables, and eat less processed food high in sugar, salt, and fat.

The report placed a particularly heavy emphasis on reducing sodium intake. According to the guidelines half the population, including children, African Americans, anyone over the age of fifty, and those with hypertension, diabetes, or chronic kidney disease, should consume 1,500 milligrams or less of sodium per day. Everyone else should keep themselves under 2,300 milligrams, about one teaspoon.

Such a heavy focus on reducing salt intake should put increased pressure on the food industry to reformulate processed foods and reduce the amount of sodium included.

I use spices – onion, garlic, turmeric, ginger, cumin, etc, instead of salt and fat to add taste.