Reducing salt intake can save lives and money

Rosie Schwartz explains the latest recommendations to slash how much salt we eat, but warns it may be a while before we see any changes

How many times have you heard that we consume too much sodium? It is indeed a familiar warning. On average, we consume more than double what's recommended: 3,400 milligrams a day, when we should only be consuming 1,500 milligrams. And it's costing us dearly - both in terms of health and health care dollars.

According to a just released report, Sodium Reduction Strategy for Canada - Recommendations of the Sodium Working Group, it's estimated that slashing our intake by 1,800 milligrams a day would prevent a staggering 23,500 cardiovascular disease events like heart attacks and stroke per year - a 13 percent decrease. Our salt-laden food - with most of the sodium coming from processed food rather than by our own hands in the form of a salt shaker - also contributes to kidney disease and may up our risk for stomach cancer, osteoporosis and asthma. Reducing our intake would also lead to a savings of $1.38 billion per year in direct health care.

But there is both potentially good and bad news to report in the battle being waged to reduce our collective sodium intakes. The Sodium Working Group, mandated by the Ministry of Health almost three years ago and made up of members from all sectors with stakes in the issue - food industry, government, health professional organizations and consumer advocacy groups - has brought forth some strong recommendations.

The potentially bad news is that it's up to Health Canada to respond in a timely fashion and given its history in cleaning up the food supply, we're likely in for a very long wait before we see any changes.

The recommendations were divided up into four categories including those which deal with the food supply, awareness and education, research and monitoring of the results. Here are a few highlights:

changes to Nutrition Facts box 

When you look at various nutrients in a food by checking the Nutrition Facts box, you will see a column for %DV. This means the percentage of the Daily Value of that nutrient that you should either strive to obtain - as in desirable nutrients) or those you might be looking to reduce (as in the undesirable ones). The report recommends that the percentage should be based on the acceptable level or Adequate Intake (AI) of sodium - 1500 milligrams per day - rather than the current one (2400 milligrams) which is near the upper limit. By using the AI on labels, consumers will have more of an idea how much sodium a food is really contributing.

 
More standardized serving sizes 

The group also wants to see standardized serving sizes on nutrition labels. This will make the task of comparing sodium counts in similar products much easier. Currently, unless you're a math whiz, you need a calculator with you at the grocery store. 

On-site disclosure of nutrition information 

Here we go again. One of the report's recommendations is to have sodium and calorie counts available at chain restaurants to help Canadians make lower-sodium choices. Parliament previously defeated a bill calling for these measures but hopefully now they'll vote with the health of Canadians in mind. 

Establishing voluntary sodium reduction targets by food category

The Working Group recommends that Health Canada continue to work with the food industry to establish voluntary sodium reduction targets by food category with the first group targets published in early 2011 and the naming of the second at the same time. Ideally by 2016, using this step-by-step process, the sodium content of Canada's food supply would be reduced by 25 percent.
There are many groups that feel that mandatory, rather than voluntary, action is called for because of the cost to Canadians. While some food companies like Campbell Soup have been actively working to lower the sodium in their products, others like some fast food companies are bringing out new sodium-laden offerings.

So what does Health Canada say about all this? "Over the coming months, Health Canada will be working with its federal, provincial and territorial partners to assess all of the recommendations made by the working group and determine how they can best be addressed," says Gary Scott Holub, spokesperson for Health Canada. He added "Individual Canadians also have a role to play -- making healthy choices to reduce sodium intake can go a long way towards reducing the risk of chronic disease."

The words "over the coming months" and "individual Canadians" may be a sign of inaction on Health Canada's part. It sounds, yet again, like they are stalling. And their track record on helping Canadians reduce their risk of disease by improving the health quotient of our food is not a good one. Their dealings with trans fats is a case in point.

Back in early 2005, the Trans Fat Task Force was formed to come up with a plan "to effectively eliminate or reduce processed trans fats in Canadian foods to the lowest level possible." The final report, TRANSforming the Food Supply, released in June 2006, recommended regulations, instead of voluntary action, to rid our food of these deadly man-made fats. Instead, the government opted for voluntary action and monitoring trans fats levels to see the progress.

Well, back in the spring of this year, Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq admitted that the voluntary route has failed and that regulations may be needed - a full four years after the report was delivered. So what's happening on that front? Not much. As of last week, "Health Canada is continuing to engage stakeholders in consultations in 2010 to further clarify potential technical challenges that still remain in order to meet the trans fat targets," stated Health Canada's Gary Scott Holub. So, what have they been doing for the past five years?

The signs of the same lack of action on the sodium issue seem to be appearing. Let's hope not - for health's sake.

Posted in: Health