Be Choosy with your Cheeses!
Nothing could be nicer than a snack of fresh bread and cheese, perhaps a chunk of Cheddar or a delicious piece of Camembert or Stilton and some fruit to go with it – a perfect combination. It is also extremely nutritious providing, among other good things: vitamin A for eyesight, vitamin B12 for red blood cells, calcium for strong bones, protein for growth and repair and magnesium for muscle function.
However, if you are watching your weight and cholesterol levels or you just want to eat healthily, then you will have to be careful not to have too much of some cheeses with a high fat and salt content.
So What is the Fat Content of Cheese?
Cheeses vary in their fat content and here is some information from a guide produced by the British Cardiac Patients Association that divides cheeses into categories according to their fat content:
Low Fat Cheeses – can be eaten freely
These include: Cottage Cheese, Quark, reduced fat Cottage Cheese and reduced fat Edam and Ricotta.
Medium Fat Cheeses – eat up to 6 oz (180g) a week
These include: Brie, Camembert, Cheese Spread, Danish Blue, Edam, Emmenthal, Feta, Goats’ Milk Soft Cheese, Medium Fat Soft Cheese, Mozzarella, Processed Cheese, reduced fat Cheddar and Cheshire Cheese, Smoked Processed Cheese and Soya cheese.
High Fat Cheeses – eat up to 4 oz (120g) a week
These include: Caerphilly, Wensleydale, Cheddar, Cheshire, Cream Cheese, Derby, Double Gloucester, Full Fat Soft Cheese, Gouda, Gruyere, Lancashire, Leicester, Lymeswold, Mascapone, Parmesan, Red Windsor, Roquefort, Stilton and Vegetarian Cheese.
…And don’t tell me, your favourite cheeses, like mine, are all in the High Fat section! Never mind, it’s not that we can’t eat them at all, is it? We shall just have to eat less of the high fat cheeses and more of the low fat ones.
And What is the Salt Content of Cheese?
Salt is an important part of the cheese making process and also helps to preserve its freshness. However we need to make sure we don’t have too much salt in our diets – the recommended daily amount for adults is 6 grammes (0.2 oz), for children between 4 – 6 years no more than 3 grammes (0.1 oz) and older children no more than 4.6 grammes (0.16 oz).
Salt or Sodium?
The salt content on the labelling of some cheeses is sometimes referred to as sodium and is shown as the sodium content in grammes or milligrams per 100 grammes of cheese. A sodium content of one gramme per 100 grammes of cheese (1%) would be equivalent to a salt content of 2.5% (to convert sodium to salt, multiply by 2.5).
So What is the Salt Content of Cheeses?
Your best guidance is of course to check the labels. But the following will give you a rough idea of the salt content in some cheeses:
Cheeses high in salt: Danish Blue, Processed Slices of Cheese, Feta, Roquefort, Gouda and Edam
Cheeses quite high in salt: Cheddar, Parmesan, Stilton, Red Leicester, Brie, Double Gloucester, Cheshire/Wensleydale/Lancashire.
Cheeses low in salt: Cottage Cheese, fromage frais and Philadelphia Cheese Spread.
Enjoy!
Do continue to enjoy your different cheeses, but just be aware that some contain more fat and salt than others, so eat those in moderation.
Sources and further information:
January 14th, 2009 at 2:25 am
Never even thought of the salt content of cheese but it is something I really should start doing. On the topic of fat, are high fat cheeses necessarily that bad? I’ve not done any research on this topic but there are good and bad types of fat. If the cheese is high in good fats surely this isn’t quite so bad? A lot of my favourites are in the high fat category so I’m hoping the answer is positive
January 14th, 2009 at 3:16 am
Great list of cheeses by fat/sodium content, I’ll have to remember this! Unfortunately cheddar is one of my favorites…like all things moderation is key
January 14th, 2009 at 11:42 am
Tom you sound like a real cheese fan
There are many cheeses with high mono-unsaturated fats (good fats) unfortunately they nearly always go hand in hand with twice as much saturated fats (bad fats). I have not found a cheese where this is not the case except for the tampered ones that are no fat, no salt and no taste 
I guess this is another lesson in moderation
January 14th, 2009 at 11:46 am
When it comes to Cheddar it seems that the slightly more pricey have a more controlled sodium content when compared with the Supermarkets own brand which tends to be rocket high in sodium
January 15th, 2009 at 5:47 pm
I confess that I use cheese as part of the protein to my diet. I would guess that I have a small wedge of sharp cheddar at least 3 times a week.
January 27th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
Cheese contains a high concentration of essential nutrients, in particular high quality protein and calcium, as well as other nutrients such as ‘phosphorus, zinc, vitamin A, riboflavin, and vitamin B12′.
Cheese appears to prevent acid demineralization and enhance remineralization of tooth enamel.
We can intake with the “good differentiation” provided here.
I am sure i will use this info to select cheese and intake it on a basis.