Indians consume twice as much WHO recommended salt limit
According to an IndiaSpend analysis of a study, an average Indian consumes 10.98 grams of salt per day – that is more than double the recommended limit of 5 grams per day by the World Health Organization (WHO). The study was conducted by the Australia-based George Institute of Global Health (GIGH) and was published in the Journal of Hypertension.
Excess salt intake can lead to high blood pressure – a leading cause of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), which accounted for 23% of all deaths in India between 2010 and 2013, according to the Causes of Death Statistics 2010-13 published by the Census office; 21.5% in rural and 29.2% in urban areas.
227,214 Indian adults – aged 19 years and older – across 29 states and seven union territories – were analyzed for the study for their salt intake; the reported mean salt consumption levels varied between 5.22 and 42.30 grams per day.
For the final analysis, 21 different studies were considered – which included 24-hour urine collection reports, 24-hour dietary recall surveys and food questionnaire surveys.
The WHO believes that high sodium consumption (greater than 2 grams per day, equivalent to 5 grams salt per day) and insufficient potassium intake (less than 3.5 grams per day) contribute to high blood pressure and increase the risk of heart disease and stroke.
‘Over the past 30 years, the average Indian diet has been transformed. Indians are eating less of pulses, fruits and vegetables, and a lot more of processed and fast foods,’ according to Claire Johnson, lead author of the study.
‘Thus, their diets are now full of salt, sugars and harmful fats which are increasing the likelihood of high blood pressure, obesity and CVDs such as heart attack and stroke,’ Claire Johnson further added.
Processed foods is pushing up mean salt intake particularly in urban areas, whereas salted pickles increase salt intake in rural areas, the study said.
CVDs are more expensive to treat, and cause economic burden to families.
According to an April 2014 study published in Tropical Medicine and International , households in India affected by cardiovascular disease spent 27% of their total household budget on out-of-pocket healthcare expenses, and hospital admissions from households that had a family member with heart disease cost 4.5 times more each year than admissions from families that had no heart disease.
Member states of the WHO, including India, have adopted a target of 30% reduction in mean population salt consumption by 2025 to prevent non-communicable diseases.
‘We need a country-wide educational program, teaching people about how to eat and how to reduce the salt in their diet,’ according to Professor Vivek Jha, executive director of GIGH, India. “It can be done but it needs investment and it needs to be made a priority, given our rapidly rising levels of CVDs and high blood pressure.”
Beware of excess salt – it kills!
