Elsevier

The Lancet

Volume 329, Issue 8530, 21 February 1987, Pages 426-429
The Lancet

Nutrition
THE DOMINANCE OF SALT IN MANUFACTURED FOOD IN THE SODIUM INTAKE OF AFFLUENT SOCIETIES

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(87)90127-9Get rights and content

Abstract

Statistical analyses suggest that 25-50% of the salt intake of Western populations is derived from the discretionary use of cooking and table salt. Yet direct estimates of discretionary salt use by a lithium technique show that in one community in Britain this source contributed only 15% to total intake. The estimates of discretionary salt use in Finland, the United States, and Britain have been exaggerated because salt losses in cooking water were not considered. Only about a quarter of cooking salt actually enters the consumed food; allowance for this in statistical calculations makes data on dietary intake similar to those assessed from urinary sodium excretion. Daily salt intake in Britain averages about 10·7 g for adult men and 8·0 g for women, figures similar to those from countries in northern Europe. The natural salt content of food provides about 10% intake, the remaining 75% being derived from salt added by manufacturers; drinking water provides a negligible amount. Any programme for reducing the salt consumption of a population should therefore concentrate primarily on a reduction in the salt used during food processing.

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