Low sodium salts will save millions of lives

Source: Science and Technology Daily

Salt is closely related to people's lives. But CNN's report points out that too much salt can lead to death. It is estimated that the number of deaths from salt intake overdose globally will reach 1.6 million this year, of which four-fifths will occur in low- and middle-income countries and nearly half will occur in people under the age of 70.

Image source: Visual China

Today's perspective

According to CNN, the United States "New England Journal of Medicine" recently released the largest and longest sodium salt replacement experiment results in history, saying that low sodium salt replaces some sodium with potassium of similar properties, which can prevent heart disease and stroke and save lives.

There are many disadvantages to excessive salt

Reports from The British Reuters agency point out that high salt intake is linked to high blood pressure, which is the leading cause of heart disease and stroke.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), more than 4 out of every 10 adults in the U.S. develop high blood pressure, and reducing sodium intake has the potential to prevent hundreds of thousands of people from falling ill or even dying prematurely in the coming years.

CNN said deaths due to excessive salt intake could be avoided. In most countries, daily salt intake is well above the WHO-recommended upper limit of 5 grams, and the global average daily intake of 10.1 grams is twice the recommended value.

Reducing salt intake could save millions of lives. But reducing salt from a diet is not easy: first, people's preferences for food are often difficult to change; second, the industry has no incentive to reduce the sodium content in food, but has a great incentive to maintain or increase its content, and there are few salt substitutes that offer the same flavor.

Low sodium salts provide double benefits

CNN reports that low sodium salts offer a double benefit. Low-sodium salts replace some of the sodium with potassium of similar properties. This alternative contains about a quarter less sodium, but tastes like regular salt and is cooked in the same way, making it an alternative that people can accept and is easy to adapt to.

Potassium salts also have a dual benefit: first, reducing sodium intake can lower blood pressure and save lives; second, increasing potassium intake (most residents of most countries, including the United States, have insufficient potassium intake) can further lower blood pressure and improve heart health.

The groundbreaking study, conducted in China by Australia's George Institute for Global Health, is the largest and longest-running sodium replacement experiment ever conducted, involving 21,000 patients with a history of stroke or poor blood pressure control (i.e., the highest risk of heart disease or stroke). The results showed that low sodium salts could prevent heart disease and stroke and save lives. Specifically, low sodium reduced the risk of death by 12 percent, stroke by 14 percent, and cardiovascular disease,including stroke and heart disease, by a combined 13 percent.

CNN said that if The risk of cardiovascular disease in Americans were reduced by 13 percent, it could prevent more than 200,000 people from developing heart disease and stroke each year, up from millions worldwide.

The researchers say the new findings add to the evidence that low sodium salts can save lives. A previous model study conducted in China showed that low-sodium salts could save 461,000 lives a year if rolled out nationwide, and the latest study published in the New England Journal of Medicine confirms the accuracy of the model.

Consuming more low-sodium salts can also reduce medical expenses. Globally, more than 25,000 people die every day from high blood pressure, and direct medical bills are about $370 billion a year. Costs caused by high blood pressure are expected to soar in the coming years due to rising morbidity and rising medical expenses. It is estimated that for every $1 spent on salt reduction, governments save $19 in related health care costs and lost productivity.

Governments should actively promote it

In its report, CNN called on governments to promote low-sodium salts by expanding supply, reducing costs and increasing acceptance by consumers, retailers and producers.

Governments should ensure that low-sodium salts are adequately supplied (a recent survey found that less than a quarter of countries can do so). Governments should also reduce the cost of low-sodium salts, which are currently higher than regular table salts, through tax and subsidy policies. Producers should also be incentivized to use alternatives in food production, raise awareness of low-sodium salts and inform the public about the benefits of low-sodium salts, which will further support these measures.

Other complementary policies include increasing the use of low-sodium salts in packaged foods, setting industry salt reduction targets and using high-salt warning labels.

In a far-reaching approach, the FDA is pursuing voluntary short-term sodium reduction targets for food manufacturers, restaurant chains and food service operators, with a focus on processed and takeaway foods, Reuters reported. The agency hopes to cut sodium intake from an average of 3,400 milligrams per day to 3,000 milligrams over the next two and a half years — though that average intake is still higher than the 2,300 milligrams per day recommended by the American Dietary Guidelines for people over the age of 14.

The American Heart Association issued a statement saying: "The FDA's goal means an important step forward, but reducing sodium intake to 3,000 milligrams per day is not enough." ”

The FDA said slowly cutting sodium intake in the coming years would drastically reduce diet-related illnesses and said it planned to publish revised follow-up targets to further gradually reduce sodium levels.

In addition, governments should require public places such as universities, hospitals, and government canteens to buy, serve, and sell food using low-sodium salts in cooking, which would reduce the sodium content in millions of meals worldwide every day.

Small changes lead to big changes. Low sodium salts are a reliable way to save lives and money, such a low cost, easy to implement, can reduce medical costs, and will ultimately bring tangible benefits to the country's economic development and people's health.