Indians make strides in reducing use of salt

NEW DELHI: Indians, aware of the dangers of excessive salt intake, are modifying their diets unlike other international communities like Australians who are sticking to high-salt foods although they are aware of its effects, according to a new study.

Populations in 181 of 187 countries consume more than the WHO-recommended daily upper limit of 5g of salt. Indians consume 9% more salt than the global average – 10.06g.

Claire Johnson, a research fellow with The George Institute for Global Health, Australia, led an India-centric study on salt intake in February. It included a cross-section of 1 395 respondents across India – educated and uneducated, urban and rural, male and female, and of different ages averaging 40 years.

Nine of 10 respondents said they were aware that a diet high in salt is bad for their health.

The participants also acted upon this knowledge, lowering their salt intake.

For instance, 98% participants reported using spices other than salt, 61% said they avoided eating out and 52% maintained they avoided processed foods.

This implies that greater awareness about the health risks of excessive salt intake could benefit Indians significantly because they are open to lifestyle changes.

“By lowering your salt consumption by 1g, you lower your heart attack and stroke risk by 4.8%. And the more you cut down, the more you gain,” said Johnson.

India’s health gains could be “enormous”, Johnson told IndiaSpend, if we could cut our average salt/sodium intake by 30%. This would cut the risk of Indians dying by heart attack or stroke by about 15%.

About 10% of the daily salt intake of an Indian occurs naturally in fruit, vegetables, cereal and other raw ingredients, said Johnson. The rest is added during cooking or at the table.

So, cutting down involves adding less salt during cooking and on the table.

Both are more doable than making the major dietary changes implicated in controlling salt-intake in the West, where the excess consumption generally comes from salt in processed foods such as pasta sauces. – IANS