Sodium
Sodium is the only mineral in our database without a reference intake: the field reads INFO. Salt itself leads at 39,300 mg per 100 grams; then soy sauce at 5493 mg, anchovies in oil at 3668 mg and parmesan at 1529 mg. The Dutch Health Council applies a maximum of 6 grams of salt per day.
Why no reference value appears here
For every other mineral on this site we show a daily reference. For sodium our source data deliberately shows none: the field is marked informative, without a target. That is not an omission but a logical choice. With sodium the question in the Netherlands is not how to get enough — average intake sits well above what the body needs — but how not to get too much. We do not fill that empty field with an invented figure.
The richest sources, and what stands out
Per 100 grams: pink Himalayan salt 39,300 mg, soy sauce 5493 mg, anchovies in oil 3668 mg, parmesan 1529 mg and smoked sausage 1200 mg. The leader is the salt itself, which matches the chemistry: table salt is just over thirty-nine percent sodium. Below it the entire top consists of salted, cured or processed products; not one fresh vegetable or fresh cut of meat appears. That is the practical insight of this page: sodium rarely comes from the salt cellar on the table and almost always from what was already in the product when you bought it.
What the Dutch Health Council says about this
The Dutch guideline reads: no more than 6 grams of salt per day. Converted, that comes to roughly 2400 mg of sodium, because salt consists of sodium and chloride together. We quote that limit because it was set by the Health Council and is applied widely by the Netherlands Nutrition Centre. We derive no upper limit ourselves and hold no norm of our own; this is exactly the sort of point where a published source belongs instead of an estimate.
What may and may not be said about sodium
Regulation (EU) No 432/2012 sets out no authorised wording about a beneficial function for sodium. That is exceptional on this site and it says something: for this mineral European rules focus on reduction, not on supplementation. We therefore write no sentence suggesting that more sodium is good for anything. For questions about salt in relation to blood pressure or medication, your GP is the right address.
Sweating, training and the salt story
Intense exertion loses sodium through sweat, and that is where the sports market usually starts a story about electrolyte powders. We do not sell them and name no brands. For the entrepreneurs and professionals we coach — training four or five times a week indoors — losses are rarely large enough to justify a separate product. The bigger gain sits in fewer ready meals and more cooking from scratch.
How we compile this list
We sort every row in the DCRAFT food database on the measured value per 100 grams and take the top of that list. Rows recorded per piece, per slice or per portion do not count, because a value per piece cannot be compared with a value per 100 grams. Products listed under a brand name are left out: their composition changes outside our control, and a ranking resting on it ages without us noticing. Where several products carry precisely the same value, it comes from one shared row in our source data and we name one product from that group. We set this rule out here because a ranking without a visible selection rule is an opinion rather than a measurement.
Frequently asked questions
How much sodium per day is the norm?
Our source data gives no reference intake for sodium. The Dutch Health Council applies a maximum of 6 grams of salt per day, roughly 2400 mg of sodium.
Which foods contain the most sodium?
Salt itself leads at 39,300 mg per 100 grams. Of the products you eat by the 100 grams, soy sauce is the strongest at 5493 mg, followed by anchovies in oil at 3668 mg and parmesan at 1529 mg.
Does sodium come mainly from the salt cellar?
No. The top of our list consists entirely of salted, cured or processed products. Most sodium is already inside the product before it reaches your table.
Do you need extra salt if you sweat a lot?
Intense exertion loses sodium through sweat. Whether that justifies a separate product depends on duration, intensity and conditions; we neither sell nor recommend such products.
Sources
- DCRAFT food database — KILLER COACH ENGINE V2.3 workbook (accessed 26 August 2026)
- Regulation (EU) No 432/2012 (accessed 26 August 2026)
- Health Council (accessed 26 August 2026)
- Netherlands Nutrition Centre (accessed 26 August 2026)
Please note: This is general information about nutrition, not medical advice. If you have symptoms or suspect a deficiency, discuss it with your doctor. We do not sell supplements and have no commercial interest in any brand.
Last updated: .
Written by Dennis, founder of Dcraft Of Fitness.