Sodium Intake Calculator
Daily sodium mg vs 2300 DV from salt and foods.
What it does
Sodium hides in spoons and packages unevenly. Half a teaspoon of table salt carries 1,150 mg while bread, soup, and restaurant plates add hundreds per serving, against a Daily Value under 2,300 mg with 1,500 ideal. Average American intake near 3,400 mg overshoots both.
The tool above sums three lines against either limit. Enter salt teaspoons with processed and restaurant milligrams, pick 2,300 or 1,500, and it prints total, %DV, and the over/under line. Defaults total 2,850 mg at 123.9 % DV, 550 mg over.
Federal sources set each constant. FDA sodium guidance fixes the <2,300 mg Daily Value with 1 tsp equal and ~3,400 mg average intake, while NIH MedlinePlus confirms salt is 40 % sodium with 1,500 mg for high blood pressure. Label rules flag 5 % DV as low and 20 % as high.
Processed foods dominate the total. Home salt accounts for a fraction of most days while bread, cheese, soup, and restaurant meals carry the rest, so label math beats shaker math. Cook more, compare labels, and season with herbs before salt.
How to use
- Enter salt spoon teaspoons.
- Enter processed food mg.
- Enter restaurant food mg.
- Pick the 2300 or 1500 limit.
- Read total first, then %DV.
- Read the over/under line.
Formula
- salt
- Table salt teaspoons at 2,300 mg each.
- processed
- Packaged food sodium in mg.
- restaurant
- Restaurant food sodium in mg.
FDA sets the <2,300 mg DV with 1 tsp equal; NIH MedlinePlus confirms 40 % sodium with the 1,500 mg blood-pressure line.
Worked example
Example: 2,850 mg day
Defaults: half tsp salt with 800 + 900 mg foods.
- Inputs: 0.5 tsp salt, 800 mg processed, 900 mg restaurant.
- Salt: 0.5 x 2,300 = 1,150 mg.
- Total: 1,150 + 800 + 900 = 2,850 mg.
- DV share: 2,850 / 2,300 x 100 = 123.9 %.
- Over: 2,850 minus 2,300 = 550 mg. Tool shows 2,850 mg, 123.9% DV.
Reference table
| Item | mg | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Daily Value | 2,300 | Upper limit |
| Ideal / BP line | 1,500 | Lower target |
| 1 tsp table salt | 2,300 | 40% sodium |
| Average US intake | ~3,400 | Mostly processed |
| Low label (5% DV) | 115 | Per serving |
| High label (20% DV) | 460 | Per serving |
Limits
- Planning math only. Needs vary by condition.
- Label estimates; recipes differ.
- Potassium and hydration unmanaged.
- Clinician guidance rules hypertension.
Common mistakes
- Counting only the shaker, not labels.
- Mixing sodium with salt grams.
- Skipping restaurant meals in totals.
- Reading %DV off wrong serving sizes.
- Treating sea salt as sodium-free.
Try it yourself
Quick checks. Answers sit tucked under each question.
No added salt, 1,200 + 600 mg foods?
Total 0 + 1,200 + 600 = 1,800. DV 78.3 %. Under 2,300 by 500; over 1,500 by 300.
1 tsp salt with 500 + 700 mg foods?
Total 2,300 + 500 + 700 = 3,500. DV 152.2 %. Over 2,300 by 1,200.
Questions
How is total sodium figured?
Salt spoons times 2,300 plus food mg. Here 1,150 + 1,700 = 2,850 mg.
What is the sodium limit?
Less than 2,300 mg a day for adults; ideal under 1,500, per FDA and NIH guidance.
How much sodium in table salt?
One teaspoon (5 mL) of table salt holds 2,300 mg sodium (40 % sodium by weight).
What is % Daily Value?
Total over 2,300 times 100. Here 123.9 % DV.
Do most people pass the limit?
Yes. Average US intake runs ~3,400 mg a day per FDA, mostly from processed foods.
What counts as low or high?
Yes. Labels flag 5 % DV or less as low and 20 % or more as high per serving.