Food and catering industries should reduce the amount of salt in their products, according to new guidance announced from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Nutrition.
Less salt could save 500,000 people
Consuming too much sodium helps promote high blood pressure, which can lead to cerebrovascular accidents (stroke) and heart attack.
“All the scientific evidence points to the need to reduce the current levels of sodium chloride consumed,” said Susan Mayne, director of the Center for Food Safety and Nutrition at the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA ).
Americans today consume an average of about 3,400 milligrams of sodium per day, while federal guidelines recommend less than 2,300 mg. Reducing sodium in food will prevent hundreds of thousands of premature deaths and illnesses over more than a decade.
“A 40% reduction in the consumption of cooking salt over the next ten years could save 500,000 lives in the United States and save nearly $ 100 billion in health care costs,” according to the Centers for Control and Development. disease prevention (CDC).
Tips for simply reducing your salt intake
The FDA recalls in its press release that it is easy to simply reduce your salt intake. As sodium is systematically added to processed foods to reduce the risk of bacteriological contamination, all processed food products provide a high amount of salt. It is therefore recommended to reduce your consumption of processed foods (industrial bread and pastries included).
“While Americans say they are watching the salt they eat and working to reduce the amount added to their food, it doesn’t make us forget that 70% of the sodium they absorb is already in purchased food products. at the supermarket, ”according to the CDC.
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