Many countries around the world use the week of 16th – 22nd March 2015 to highlight the importance of reducing salt intake in all populations throughout the world. This year for World Salt Awareness Week we will be focusing on salt and children.
Importance of salt
Salt or sodium chloride in small amounts is essential for good living for a number of reasons. These include the following:
• Helps maintain the right balance of fluids in your body
• Helps transmit nerve impulses
• Influences the contraction and relaxation of muscles
Your kidneys naturally balance the amount of sodium stored in your body for optimal health. When your body sodium is low, your kidneys essentially hold on to the sodium. When body sodium is high, your kidneys excrete the excess in urine. If for some reason your kidneys cannot eliminate enough sodium, the sodium starts to build up in your blood. Sodium attracts and holds water, your blood volume increases, which makes your heart work harder and increases pressure in your arteries. Such diseases as congestive heart failure, cirrhosis and chronic kidney disease can make it hard for your kidneys to keep sodium levels balanced.
Some people’s bodies are more sensitive to the effects of sodium than are others. If you are sodium sensitive, you retain sodium more easily, leading to fluid retention and increased blood pressure. If this becomes chronic, it can lead to heart disease, stroke, kidney disease and congestive heart failure.
How much salt is too much?
It is recommended that adults should be limiting sodium to less than 2,300 mg a day — or 1,500 mg if you are age 51 or older, or if you are black, or if you have high blood pressure, diabetes or chronic kidney disease.
A single teaspoon of table salt, which is a combination of sodium and chloride, has 2,325 milligrams (mg) of sodium.
Where do we get sodium chloride from?
The main sources of sodium comes from what we eat. Most of our sodium chloride comes from foods that are processed and prepared. These foods are typically high in salt and additives that contain sodium. Processed foods include bread, prepared dinners like pasta, meat and egg dishes, pizza, cold cuts and bacon, cheese, soups, and fast foods.
Some foods naturally contain sodium. These include all vegetables and dairy products, meat, and shellfish. While they do not have an abundance of sodium, eating these foods does add to your overall body sodium content.
Many recipes call for salt, and many people also add salt to their food at the table.
Why focus on salt in children
In many countries it is felt that children, like adults, consume much more salt than the recommended amount. It is therefore important that we take measures to reduce this high intake. Liking salt and salty foods is a learned taste preference, therefore it is important that children do not develop a taste for salt as, often, these dietary habits continue into adult life. A high intake of salt in children can influence blood pressure – and may predispose a child to the development of a variety of serious conditions like osteoporosis, high blood pressure, asthma, stomach cancer and obesity.
This year, for World Salt Awareness Week, we want to ensure everyone understands the importance of a healthy start for children. Public health professionals must continue their efforts to highlight the importance of children avoid eating large amounts of salty foods. We must continue our educational campaigns. Much more education programmes are needed to reinforce this message in Anguilla.
How we can decrease salt intake?
I think that almost all residents of Anguilla can benefit from reducing the sodium in their diet. The following are some helpful suggestions:
• Eat more fresh foods. Most fresh fruits and vegetables are naturally low in sodium. Also, fresh meat is lower in sodium than are luncheon meat, bacon, hot dogs, sausage and ham.
• Use low-sodium products. If you do buy processed foods, choose those that are labeled “low sodium.” Better yet, buy plain whole-grain rice and pasta instead of ones that have added seasonings.
• Remove salt from recipes whenever possible. You can leave out the salt in many recipes, including casseroles, soups, stews and other main dishes that you cook. Look for cookbooks that focus on lowering risks of high blood pressure and heart disease.
• Limit use of sodium-laden condiments. Soy sauce, salad dressings, sauces, dips, ketchup, mustard and relish all contain sodium.
• Use herbs, spices and other flavourings to season foods. Use fresh or dried herbs, spices, as seasonings for your meals. Sea salt, however, is not a good substitute. It has about the same amount of sodium as table salt.
Children are considered a vulnerable group in society often with little influence on or involvement in what they eat. Adults, therefore, have an important role in influencing how much salt our children use. Adults have a vital role in our children’s eating habits. It is important that we recognize this from an early age so that our children adopt healthy eating habits. Some of these habits will continue into adult life.
Conclusion
Many adults and children in Anguilla use too much salt. This can have serious short and long term health effects. This year, for World Salt Awareness Week we want to ensure everyone understands the importance of a healthy start for children. We must ensure that our children do not develop the taste for too much salt and that they avoid salty foods as much as possible.
Ask Your Doctor is a health education column and is not a substitute for medical advice from your physician. The reader should consult his or her physician for specific information concerning specific medical conditions. While all reasonable efforts have been made to ensure that all information presented is accurate, as research and development in the medical field are ongoing, it is possible that new findings may supersede some data presented.
Dr Brett Hodge is an Obstetrician/Gynaecologist and Family Doctor who has over thirty two years in clinical practice. Dr Hodge has a medical practice in The Johnson Building in The Valley (Tel: 264 4975828).
