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Another step in Michelle Obama’s campaign to fight childhood obesity is to urge the nation’s largest food companies to make their food products healthier by reducing fat, salt and sugar in their products. She is also requesting that these same companies reconsider directing their marketing of unhealthy foods to children.

At a meeting of the Grocery Manufacturers Association last week, Michelle Obama told the food industry “to not just tweak around the edges but entirely rethink the products you are offering, the information that you provide about these products, and how you market those products to our children,” she said.

The Grocery Manufacturers Association, which counts Kraft Foods Inc., Coca Cola Co. and General Mills Inc. among its members, invited her to speak at its science forum this week.  Attendees gave her a standing ovation.

Welcoming the first lady and helping implement her campaign against childhood obesity could have its advantages. The food industry is in a situation where their profits are expected to decrease in the coming year, due to a child nutrition bill that is moving through Congress that could potentially remove all junk food in schools.

Former President Bill Clinton, who in 2005 partnered with the American Heart Association for a similar campaign against childhood obesity, said he was thrilled that Michelle Obama had joined the cause. “She’ll get visibility for it that I can’t get. She’s a lot younger than I am. She’ll relate better to a lot of the kids in the schools. They’ll relate better to her. I think it’s a really great thing for her to do this.”

Last week, Clinton announced that he has been able to reduce beverage calories shipped to schools by 88%.   His effort was aimed at replacing full calorie soft drinks with reduced calorie, smaller portion beverages in school cafeterias and vending machines.

Since the science forum last week, Kraft Foods Inc. has announced that they are going to make positive changes and reduce fat, salt and sugar in their products.  Michelle Obama expects that other companies will announce changes to their products in the coming weeks.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_michelle_obama_food_companies

Look at your nutrition labels and you will see that sodium is everywhere.  Added in soups, in frozen entrees and canned vegetables, sodium is truly hard to avoid. The American Heart Association recommends that we consume a maximum amount of 2,300 milligrams of sodium each day, which is equal to one teaspoon of salt, but most Americans have problems keeping to these healthful guidelines.  Follow these tips and you can reduce your sodium intake and lead a healthier lifestyle.

1. Beware the take out!  According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, restaurants pile on the salt for flavor.  By eating in restaurants or using take out services, you cannot control the amount of sodium added to your food.   On average, one entrée contains twice the recommended daily amount of sodium.   If you must eat out, attempt to avoid sauces and aim for steamed vegetable dishes.

2. Control your breakfast!  The Mayo Clinic tells us that processed foods, not added table salt, are the culprits for about 77% of our sodium intake and many processed foods are found in breakfast items. Switch to whole-grain cereal or oatmeal and add fresh fruit to your morning meal.

3. Use more onions!  Experiment with onions!  Onions come in many sizes, shapes and flavors and can enhance your meal without added sodium.  Once you get comfortable adding onions to your recipes, explore leeks!

4. Control your vegetables!  Whenever possible, try to use fresh vegetables over canned or frozen vegetables.  Sure, canned vegetables are convenient, and if you must use the canned variety, just make sure to rinse your vegetables thoroughly to wash away that sodium that was used as a preservative.

5. Cook with wine!  Explore wines in sauces rather than adding salt.  Red wine adds flavor to red meat, braised chicken and stews, while white wine adds flavor to most chicken and fish dishes.

6. Use more garlic!  Using garlic not only adds flavor without adding sodium, but garlic has numerous health benefits as well.  Be creative when you are cooking, you can use lemon juice and other herbs to add flavor.

7. Experiment with roasting!  Roasting is a great way to bring out the flavor of your foods.  Most vegetables and meats can be roasted for ample flavor with the salt!

8. Make homemade soups!  Canned soups are big sodium culprits!  It’s easier than you think to create the soups you love at home and you will be able to control the sodium!  Many broth and stock companies are now offering reduced sodium blends for you to use when cooking.

9. Beware marinades and meats!  Whether you are cooking at home, or ordering from a restaurant, try to watch the sodium in how your meat is prepared.  Brined and smoke meats contain a lot of sodium and should be avoided.  When it comes to marinades, try the low-sodium varieties and forgo the rich sauces.

10. Control your condiments!  Condiments contain sneaky salt!  Be careful with the soy sauce, ketchup and mustard.  Even be careful with pickles and mayonnaise.  Whenever possible, substitute the regular condiments with low sodium versions.

SOURCE: http://food.aol.com/healthykitchen/sodium?icid=main|main|dl3|link1|http%3A%2F%2Ffood.aol.com%2Fhealthy-kitchen%2Fsodium