The serving-size mistake that changes a sodium log

Keep the calculation visible

A log is easier to check when it retains the label amount and the portion multiplier. That way, you can find a transcription error without guessing what happened at the meal.

Use one unit consistently. “mg sodium” is clearer than a column called “salt,” which may refer to a different quantity.

Work through one portion

Here is an arithmetic example with invented label values, not a recommendation: a label lists 300 mg sodium per serving and you ate one and a half servings. The record is 300 × 1.5 = 450 mg sodium.

If the portion is uncertain, write “approximately 1.5 servings.” Extra decimal places do not make an estimate more accurate.

Handle restaurant food honestly

Use a published value when the restaurant provides one, and note the menu item and portion. Otherwise, label the entry as an estimate rather than presenting a database match as an exact measurement.

Leave unknown values unknown. A blank entry and a confirmed zero mean different things. You can still preserve the food and portion description for a later discussion.

Read the basis of the number before recording it

Find out whether the label gives sodium for one serving, the whole package, or a fixed weight such as 100 g. Then identify the amount eaten. A value can be copied perfectly yet be wrong for your portion if its basis is ignored. Keep the basis visible in the notes rather than saving only the final arithmetic result.

For a label stating 300 mg sodium per 30 g serving, eating 45 g gives a serving factor of 45 ÷ 30 = 1.5. The corresponding record amount is 300 × 1.5 = 450 mg. These are invented label values for arithmetic practice, not an example of a recommended portion or intake.

Keep sauces and additions identifiable

If a meal contains a separately added sauce or dressing, decide whether the main meal entry already includes it. A restaurant estimate for a complete dish and a second entry for its included sauce may double count the same food. An estimate that excludes a separately added condiment may omit it. Write down what your source represents before combining entries.

For a shared dish, record your best description of the portion and explain the uncertainty. Do not assume a fixed fraction unless that is how the dish was divided. A note such as “about a quarter of the batch; portions uneven” is more transparent than a very precise total with no explanation. The calculator scales your inputs; it cannot make an uncertain recipe exact.

Convert salt grams to sodium milligrams before logging

Read the nutrient name, unit and portion basis together. A label that says “salt 1.2 g per 100 g” cannot be copied as “sodium 1.2 mg.” For food-label arithmetic, Leeds Teaching Hospitals gives the conversion: salt in grams divided by 2.5 gives sodium in grams. Multiply that answer by 1,000 for milligrams. Equivalently, salt in grams × 400 gives approximate sodium in milligrams.

First match the amount eaten to the label basis, then convert. For an invented label showing 1.2 g salt per 100 g, a 75 g portion contains 1.2 × 75 ÷ 100 = 0.9 g salt. That is 0.9 ÷ 2.5 × 1,000 = 360 mg sodium. These values demonstrate arithmetic; they are not a serving recommendation or an intake goal.

• Use the salt and sodium converter for the nutrient conversion. It does not scale a per-100-g label to your portion automatically; do that step first. The separate portion calculator expects sodium in milligrams.
• If a nutrition label gives both sodium and its salt equivalent for the same portion, they are two expressions of the same information; do not add them. If their stated bases or values conflict, retain a label photo and ask the manufacturer or a dietitian to clarify.
• Use the nutrition declaration, not the weight of a salt-substitute product, as the starting value. FDA notes that ingredients other than table salt can contribute sodium.
• Retain the original label and mark uncertain portions as estimates. A label’s reference intake cannot set your personal medical target.

Use your own care plan

Sodium goals can differ with individual needs. Do not copy a target from another condition’s page; for example, advice discussed for POTS may not apply to someone managing blood pressure. Ask your clinician what to record.

The free log and Sodium Tracker+ help organize amounts. They do not prescribe a sodium target.