<SNIP mainly stuff on added salt with more than 2 quote symbols>

 I have read enough newspapers to know that ham generally comes from
outfits that claim that salt is necessary to form ham, or at least what
manages to sell as "ham".

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 What else is loaded with salt:

* Most canned meat and seafood, most canned soups, most canned
pasta, and most canned prepared meals.
 One notable exception is "low sodium" tuna where they charge a goodly 50
cents-plus a can more to not add close to 400 milligrams of sodium per 5.5
or 6 or so ounce can.

* Flavor packets in all kinds of what I think of as "boxed dinners", soup
powders, most gravy, etc.  I think one would do well by tossing about 60%
of the "flavor packet" in the trash.  If you are up to identifying any of
the seasonings significantly used in the "flavor packet" and re-add them
individually from scratch, you will do well.

 One bit of advice:  Most good healthy soup is made from scratch!

 Also, the usual cheap "ramen noodles" have content that I best describe
as empty calories, added partially hydrogenated fat (which is the main
source of "trans fats"), and a salt-laden flavor packet.
 I say eat a packet or two (while throwing at least half the flavor
packlet in the trash or down the drain) in addition to a "healthy diet" if
you are a bicycle messenger or you run at least 25 kilometers per week.
 Also, probably better to substitute with "Mac-&-Cheese" with 50-70% of
the flavor packet tossed.  Also omit at least half the recommended
butter/margarine addition, and the other at-most-half I would replace with
a 50-50 mixture of "buttery spread" and olive oil, maybe 60-40 in favor of
olive oil - though lean-modified "Mac-&-Cheese" leftovers tend to congeal
(still edible to most bicycle messengers in my experience).

* In general, prepacked lunchmeats.  Then again, salamis, bolognas and
"loaf" type meats generally have more of unhealthier type fat than
anything else besides water.  Frankfurters and knockwurst rank likewise,
with frankfurters as much as "85% fat free" still having a majority of its
calories from fat of worse-than-average kind.
 Other sausages mostly have more fat than anything else besides water,
though I can't say that all are also rich in salt.

 So far, raw beef cuts (including raw steaks), raw pork cuts, and
raw ground beef appear to me to generally lack added salt.

* Most breakfast cereals!  The exceptions appear to me to be mainly
"puffed grains" and shredded wheat, including "frosted mini wheats".
Most others have added salt per ounce to an extent that appears to me
to be common practice with potato chips!

* All too much bread!  I have found "less offensive" to be Arnold brand
"Bakery Light" series, and whenever I have calculated ratio of sodium
content to weight or calories, I have generally found that product line
to be not as bad as most others.
 Also, I advise to get "whole wheat" over anything else (whether Arnold
"Bakery Light" or otherwise), for higher fiber content and lower ratio of
calories to food mass along with some chance of better overall nutrient
content.

* Condiments - ketchup, mustard, mayo, most salad dressings, etc!  Most
mayo is also so rich in fat (in my experience typically soybean oil) as to
have more calories per ounce than pure sugar!
 Find the less-salty salad dressings and use them sparingly if they
depend on high oil content.  In general, be sparing with condiments!
 Exception - if you homebrew them to be healthier!

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 I am aware that sodium intake does not rank as high for causing high
blood pressure as does overweightness/obesity, lack of aerobic exercise,
insufficient sleep, and use of drugs that are either stimulants (nicotine,
vasoconstrictor decongestants, related weight loss aids, to lesser extent
caffeine, stimulant recreational drugs) or ones that make the liver work
harder (especially alcohol).
 However, excessive sodium intake remains a significant cause and/or
significant contributing factor to high blood pressure, and is a
contributing factor to kidney failure even if blood pressure remains
normal.

==================

- Don Klipstein (don@misty.com)

I can only tell you what I believe.  Since my heart operations, my wife buys
basically lean meats (fat being bad for my heart, or so the medical
professionals say).  Now, I am a guy who use to love to have fat on my
meats.  I have noticed that today the meats being sold today at supermarkets
have very little fat on them (having been trimmed off by the butcher I
guess).  So, even if I wanted more fat in your food, you cannot buy meats
with more fat.  As for pork, I used to love pork chops with that nice strip
of fat on them....can't find them anymore....at least I haven't seen them
sold in supermarkets anymore.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pork_chop makes the claim.

--
  Ron