Advocacy for Salt Reduction through PolicyIntervention in Nigeria
Following a one-day ‘Journalism Training on Salt Reduction’ recently organised by the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), Sunday Ehigiator writes on the dangers of excessive salt consumption, while also calling on the government to put in place, necessary policy intervention to help in curbing excessive salt intake by Nigerians
As said in popular parlance, “If you can taste the salt, it’s already salty”. Eating too much salt raises blood pressure and the risk of cardiovascular disease, heart attack, stroke, and kidney disease.
The Non-Communicable Diseases Alliance (NCDs) also revealed that diseases such as cardiovascular diseases are the primary cause of death and disability worldwide.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), globally, excess sodium (salt) consumption (more than 5 grams a day, or about a teaspoon of table salt) leads to almost 2 million deaths each year.
Nigeria currently grapples with a huge burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) as seen in recent data. By observation of social media data, you will also confirm the increase in crowdfunding for some lifelong diseases related to NCDs.
Nigeria currently records an estimated daily salt consumption reaching up to 5.8 grams per day, which exceeds the World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommended limit of 2 grams of sodium per day or less than 5 grams of salt per day, equivalent to just one teaspoon of salt daily.
Hypertension; mainly caused by an increased intake of salt or sodium, accounts for 12 per cent of deaths in Nigeria, hence the urgent need for more advocacy on salt reduction among Nigerians
The training
The media training, tagged, ‘Journalism Training on Salt Reduction’ organised by the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) in Lagos State, brought together journalists from different media organisations, and health experts, including Non-governmental organisations, as they sought to forge a pact on improving media advocacy on salt reduction, industry monitoring, and need for policy interventions.
It was held in partnership with Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI), and the Network for Health Equity and Development (NHED).
Mandatory salt target
In his remark, the Executive Director of CAPPA, Akinbode Olufemi, said Nigerians must make healthy dietary choices to live longer, and the government must also help the public in making these choices by setting up a mandatory salt target, as some of these lifestyle choices include the reduction of salt even in processed foods.
“Nigeria currently consumes up to 5.8 grams of salt per day which exceeds the World Health Organization (WHO) limit of 2 grams of sodium per day or less than 5 grams of sodium per day.
“Our role as a health-focused civil society organization is to help the public understand the dangers of their choices, especially when consumption is driven by a gap in knowledge when it comes to food. We also constantly engage with the government to put in place the relevant legislation to protect Nigerians.
“However, as journalists, you have key roles to play in this campaign to achieve the necessary salt reduction target for a healthy nation. You also must help Nigerians understand the gimmicks of the food production industry that promote unhealthy foods as the norm.”
He said the training will further advance the quest that Nigerians are well-educated on the need for salt reduction and the need for the government to set mandatory salt targets in Nigeria.
NCDs as the primary cause of death and disability
On her part, a Food and Nutrition Scientist at CAPPA, Bukola Odele, noted that the WHO has confirmed non-communicable diseases (NCDs) to be the primary cause of death and disability globally. According to her, “The World Health Organisation (WHO) has confirmed Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) as the primary causes of death and disability globally, and it accounts for an estimated 29 per cent of all deaths in Nigeria.
“Approximately, 2 million deaths each year are linked to a high salt diet. Salt reduction is a crucial step in lowering NCD deaths and improving cardiovascular health.
“Nigeria records an average daily salt consumption ranging between 2.8g to 10g per day. The main source of sodium in our diet is salt, although it can come from monosodium glutamate (MSG). High sodium consumption (>2g/day, equivalent to 5g of salt per day) contributes to high blood pressure and increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease.
“Reducing sodium intake significantly reduces blood pressure in adults. Salt reduction is a cost-effective public health intervention that adopts a multi-sectoral approach to tackle the NCD burden.”
Global Action On Salt Reduction
Relating the ‘SHAKE (Surveillance, Harness Industry, Adopt standards for labelling and marketing, Knowledge, and Environment) Technical Package for Salt Reduction’ as recommended by the WHO, Odele said, “The WHO recommends the formulation of sodiumrelated policies and practical actions that should be implemented to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease.
“These include, lowering sodium content in processed and packaged food, conducting mass media campaigns to alter consumer behaviour around sodium, implementing front-of-pack labelling to help consumers select food products with lower sodium content, implementing public food procurement and service policies to reduce sodium content in the food served or sold.”
Need For Policy Intervention
Speaking on the need for policy intervention, NHED’s Technical Advisor, Dr Jerome Mafeni, said that reducing sodium intake significantly reduces blood pressure in adults (<2g/day sodium ( <5g /day salt).
According to him, “Key salt reduction measures will generate an extra year of healthy life for a cost that falls below the average annual income or gross domestic product per person.
“Reducing salt intake to less than 5 grams per day (about 1 teaspoon) will save around 2.5 million lives every year.”
He proposed the implementation of policies such as, “Setting Salt Targets by developing mandatory salt reduction targets for food manufacturers and food service industries.
“Education and awareness campaign by utilising the mass media, and social media to educate the general population about the risk of excessive salt.
“Food labelling regulations in a way that mandatory clear and standard labelling on the sodium content on packaged foods; and lastly, regulation advocacy, in which we Advocate for mandatory salt reduction regulation to facilitate salt reduction efforts.”
He concluded that, by implementing mandatory salt reduction targets, we not only address the immediate health risks associated with high sodium consumption but also pave the way for long-term benefits in reducing the burden of cardiovascular and other diseases.
Dangers of Unhealthy Processed Foods
Presenting a research work titled, ‘Nigeria Sodium/Salt Consumption Patterns and Nigerian Perspective on Salt’, a Cardiovascular Researcher from the University of Abuja (UNIABUJA) Cardiovascular Research Unit, Vanessa Alfa, noted that increased consumption of unhealthy processed foods, particularly those high in sodium, is a major risk factor for Cardiovascular Diseases (CVD).
According to her, “Sodium derived from packaged foods and beverages is a key driver of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), particularly hypertension and CVDs, in many parts of the world.
“Reducing sodium intake is a highly cost-effective strategy to control high blood pressure and prevent CVD: Sodium reduction strategy is a WHO ‘Best Buy’ strategy in addressing unhealthy diets in the population, and this can be achieved through, nutritional labelling reformulation and implementation of front-of-pack labelling.”
Generating Editor-friendly saltreduction stories
Speaking to attendees on how to get editor-friendly salt-reduction stories, Head of Media at CAPPA, Robert Egbe noted that, “As a journalist, writing stories that capture your editor’s attention can sometimes be challenging. This is often because your story is not the only one fighting for his/her attention.
“There is always competition from other stories by your colleagues. If your editor does not find your story to be newsworthy or “strong” enough, it will most likely not stand a chance of publication on its merits.
“Sometimes, even newsworthy stories don’t cut it. I’m sure all of us have that experience of filing a report, a good one, which seemed like a sure bet to get published but was not.”
He said the reason such reports may not be published could be attributed to either, “Excessive adverts inflow, lack of space, or publisher’s interest.”
He, therefore, recommended through research, good use of statistics, use of infographics, humanising the story, using expert opinions, community efforts, hard-to-get or hidden sources, tying the story to events, seasonal angles, and using a very catchy, yet unsensational headlines as some ways to generate an editor-friendly salt-reduction stories