The average adult is recommended to consume 6g of salt (a teaspoon) a day, but on average, people in the UK eat around 9.5g per day (Source: NHS: Choices). Figures show that 75% of the salt we eat is already in the food we buy and thus it is advisable to not use additional salt in cooking or at the table.
Eating too much salt increases the risk of high blood pressure, which is responsible for 9.5 million deaths annually. In turn, high blood pressure can lead to other health problems such as heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease.
That’s why the 11th-17th March is World Salt Awareness Week organised by World Action on Salt and Health (WASH). Throughout the week, WASH will be educating the world about the consequences of high salt intake and teaching us how to use less salt whilst still producing tasty food. The theme for 2013 is “Less Salt Please!” and the campaign encourages everyone to ask food producers and chefs to lower the amount of salt in their foods.
Australian initiatives
The Australian division of WASH have already begun various campaign initiatives. They are asking famous TV personality and chef Marco Pierre White to use less salt in the recipes featured on Master Chef Australia. To help them in their mission, they encourage WASH members and the general public to sign up to http://masterchef.com.au/ and post a message to Pierre White simply asking for “less salt please!”.
The campaign highlights the influence celebrity chefs can have on our diets. Whilst many blame cheap supermarket ready meals for their high salt and fat content, often recipes offered by celebrity chefs in their TV programmes and cookbooks advise using salty ingredients or recommend generous helpings of salt for flavour. Additionally, many chefs’ supermarket product ranges have been criticized for their salt content, as in 2009 when Jamie Oliver’s pasta sauces came under fire for containing as much salt as ten bags of ready salted crisps.
In order to make celebrity personalities accountable, it is imperative to ask them for less salt; take the time to email your favourite celebrity chef to ask them about reducing the salt in their recipes.
Additionally, WASH recommend asking your local restaurants or cafés to use less salt in their dishes, and perhaps asking them to consider removing salt-shakers from their tables.
How to: eat less salt
Here at the GACD we are producing a series of videos for Salt Awareness Week to spread the message about salt and our health. Our first video gives you some quick and easy tips for reducing salt in your diet. Watch the video, in which Jessica Goldman Foung (www.sodiumgirl.com) advises you on how to reduce your salt intake, particularly when eating out, below:
Get involved
If you want to get involved in asking for “less salt please!” this March:
Tweet with the hashtag #LessSalt to spread the word.
If you live in Australia, send an email to dropthesalt@georgeinstitute.org.au with a postal address to request a salt awareness pack.
Check out www.worldactionsalt.com for more information.
Share your tips and tricks with us on twitter @gacd_media: How do you watch your salt intake?