Vegetarian Advice: Sodium In Fake Meat Products

Question: About sodium in fake meat...am I concerned for nothing?

I enjoy many of the vegetarian fake meat products available these days (taco meat, meatballs, etc). However I notice that every one I eat is very high in sodium (at least it seems to me).

A single serving of a given product can be easily 20% of the usda sodium allotment....and I may eat two or three servings. I'm concerned i'm getting too much sodium with these products. No cholestrol, low in fat, but high in sodium for taste.

Has the industry overlooked this or am I concerned for nothing? I'd appreciate any help you could give me. Thanks, C.L.

Savvy Vegetarian Advice

Dear C.L.,

You're right to be concerned about the amount of sodium in those fake meats. And no, the industry hasn't overlooked it, they just don't care because Salt Sells. The main ingredient, soy meal, is not so good either, in the quantities you're eating. Soy tends to cause hormonal imbalances, has something like sixteen known allergens, and the things they do to it in processing appear to cause cancer.

What I don't understand is why you need to eat so much highly processed fake meat, when there are so many other good sources of vegetarian protein widely available. Why not try some other kinds of vegetarian protein, like tofu, tempeh, beans, hummus, nuts, seeds, high protein grains like quinoa, etc? I've attached the SV report, Vegetarian Nutrition.

Thanks for writing! Judith Kingsbury, Savvy Vegetarian

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