Is Your Salad Dressing Making Your Salad Less Healthy? Possibly. A Dietitian Explains

Salads are a staple food for many people, and a convenient, delicious way to make sure you get enough veggies in your diet. But when it comes to salad dressing, some are more nutritious than others.

If you want to maximize the health benefits of your salad, it may help to learn which nutrition-boosting ingredients to look for, and which you might want to limit.

Is salad dressing bad for you?

Not necessarily. It depends on the ingredients.

Many store-bought salad dressings contain ingredients - such as added sugar and chemical preservatives - that can take away from the health benefits of the salad. Plus, many people use more than the suggested serving size of dressing. So you may be getting even more of these ingredients than you realize.

But other salad dressings use ingredients that not only enhance the flavor of your salad, but also provide health benefits of their own.

What can make salad dressing bad for you?

Here are some of the salad dressing ingredients that you may want to cut back on.

Added sugar

Many store-bought salad dressings have 8 g of added sugar per 2 tbsp serving size. Based on the guidelines from the American Heart Association (AHA), that's already 32% of the daily limit for women and 22% for men.

Artificial sweeteners

Many salad dressings use artificial sweeteners like sucralose in place of real sugar. Then their products can be labeled sugar-free, since artificial sweeteners aren't classified as sugar.

But even though artificial sweeteners don't raise blood sugar, add calories, or cause cavities the way sugar can, they have downsides. Artificial sweeteners have been linked to several health concerns, including:

• Increased appetite

• Weight gain

• Poorly regulated blood sugar

• An imbalance of good and harmful bacteria in the gut microbiome

• Increased risk of stroke and heart disease

• Increased risk of metabolic syndrome

Certain additives

Store-bought salad dressings are often high in additives, food chemicals that are added to packaged foods to enhance color, texture, or flavor, or prolong shelf life (preservatives). And some additives are harmful to your health.

There are certain additives that show up in many bottled salad dressings, such as:

• Titanium dioxide: This color enhancer is banned in the European Union. It's also on the Environmental Working Group's (EWG) "dirty dozen" list of food chemicals to avoid, since there are several concerns about its safety. Some research connects titanium dioxide to cancer.

• Sodium benzoate: This preservative is thought to disrupt hormones and increase the risk of cancer, among other health harms.

Saturated fat

Having some fat in your diet is essential. Dietary fat provides many health benefits, including helping your body absorb vitamins and nutrients, and increasing your energy levels.

But the type of fat you consume matters, and saturated fat is the kind of fat you should limit. Saturated fat may raise LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, which is a risk factor for heart disease.

Salad dressing, particularly creamy salad dressings, often contain high amounts of saturated fat. This is because they are usually made from milk, mayonnaise, and/or cream. A 2 tbsp serving of ranch dressing provides about 2 g of saturated fat, which is 10% of the daily limit. Other examples of creamy salad dressings include thousand island and blue cheese.

High amounts of sodium

Most adults in the U.S. already get too much sodium in their diet. The FDA reports that people consume an average of 3,400 mg of sodium per day. This is well above the recommended limit of 2,300 mg per day. Eating too much sodium over time can lead to high blood pressure, stroke, and heart disease.

Many bottled salad dressings are high in sodium. Sodium is used both as a flavor booster and as a preservative to extend the product's shelf life.

The amount of sodium in bottled salad dressings varies. But even a basic, healthful-seeming balsamic vinaigrette contains about 13% of your daily sodium limit in just 2 tbsp. So, if you use more than the recommended serving size, or if your salad contains other salty toppings like croutons or olives, the amount of sodium can add up quickly.

How to choose a nutritious salad dressing

One way to make sure you're getting a nutritious salad dressing is to make it yourself. This gives you complete control over the ingredients (more on this below). But it's possible to find store-bought salad dressings that are good for you. You just have to know what to look for.

Ingredients to seek out include:

• A nutritious oil: These include olive, flaxseed, or avocado oil. Each is rich in heart-healthy, unsaturated fats that can help you feel full, and aid your body's ability to absorb vitamins and nutrients.

• An acid: Acids like vinegar and lemon juice add moisture and flavor to your salad while adding very few calories. Plus, red wine vinegar provides antioxidants. Apple cider vinegar contains a small amount of prebiotics and probiotics, which can benefit gut health.

• Garlic and/or fresh herbs and spices: These can help boost flavor. Garlic, a natural prebiotic food, has many health benefits, including antibacterial properties. Many fresh herbs and spices have health benefits of their own.

• Natural sweeteners: Sweeteners like molasses or maple syrup aren't necessary in a salad dressing. But adding a small amount of natural sweeteners can help amp up flavor without providing too much sugar.

• Salt: Salt is OK in small amounts.

A good rule of thumb is to look for a dressing that contains few ingredients. This generally means it will be free from additives like preservatives and artificial colors or flavors.

What are the healthiest alternatives to salad dressing?

Most people would turn down a salad without dressing. But you don't need to eat your salad plain. If you can't find a store-bought salad dressing you like, there are countless dressings you can make at home.

The most basic recipe is an oil and vinegar combination. To make this, simply mix together two parts olive oil with one part vinegar, then season lightly with salt and fresh or dried herbs. You can substitute different types of oil to create different flavor profiles. And try swapping out acids like lemon or orange juice for the vinegar.

To create a creamy homemade salad dressing, try using ingredients like low fat Greek yogurt or tahini. Mix these with another liquid like water, olive oil, or lemon juice to thin it. Then season as desired.

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