5 Low-sodium Cheeses

Brick cheese was first produced in Wisconsin the late 1800s. It's named after the clay-fired bricks once used in making it. Its taste is mild and similar to white American cheddar, but it's cooked at a higher temperature. That produces more fat and a different protein structure, resulting in a creamy cheese that melts perfectly. It's not the cheese with the lowest amount of sodium on our list, but with about 160 milligrams of sodium per 1-ounce serving, that's not half bad, as far as cheese goes.

Goat cheese is a soft, neutral flavored cheese that's ideal for pairing with savory salads and sandwiches and topping on sweet treats, too. It's also spreadable and makes a wonderful addition to a charcuterie board. Because goat milk also has less lactose than cow's milk, it's a great option for those who are lactose intolerant. Goat cheese can have between 100 and 130 milligrams of sodium in one, 1 ounce serving.

Don't get fresh mozzarella confused with the shredded stuff. That's key here. Fresh mozzarella is high in moisture and doesn't use salt in aging. It's often sold in containers of liquid — usually water, brine or whey — to keep it fresh. It's commonly served sliced with tomatoes, basil and vinaigrette as a Caprese salad. A single, 1-ounce serving can have as little as 40 milligrams of sodium.

Some of your favorite desserts probably include this next cheese. We're talking about cream cheese. What makes cream cheese different from some of the other cheeses on the list is that it's made from cream instead of milk. But like goat cheese, cream cheese is delicious with both sweet and savory foods. What would lox and bagels or cheesecake be without cream cheese? And it's one of the lowest on our list — a 1-ounce serving can have as few as 53 milligrams of sodium.

The cheese that's actually lowest in sodium is one of the most famous. Swiss cheese. While there are hundreds of varieties of Swiss cheese, we're mainly talking about the yellow, medium-hard cheeses that are classified as Swiss or Alpine cheese. They originated in the Emmental area Switzerland. These cheeses are known for having holes — or eyes — that form when a bacteria called Propionibacterium freudenrichii is added during the cheesemaking process. It produces carbon dioxide that creates the holes that the cheese is so famous for.

While Swiss cheese might be delicious on a Reuben, you might have to skip sandwich and eat just the cheese (corned beef is loaded with sodium!). A single 1-ounce serving of Emmental has about 60 milligrams of sodium. So have two!