Toddlers Ill From Too Much Salt

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Looks like everyone needs to check the salt they eat.

 

Jo

 

Children as young as four are eating so much salt it is putting their

health at risk by raising their blood pressure, a study suggests.

The average four-year-old ate 4.7g a day, which is way above the 2-3g

recommended for this age group, the Journal of Human Hypertension

reports.

 

Each extra gram eaten raised blood pressure significantly. This

increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.

 

Experts warned parents to look out for hidden salt in foods.

 

Hidden salt

 

In the study, which involved 2,127 4-18-year-olds in Britain as part

of an official audit for the Department of Health called the National

Diet and Nutrition Survey, salt intake did not include salt added in

cooking or at the table, although this often occurred.

 

About 1,658 kept a diary of what they ate and drank and their salt

intake and blood pressure was recorded.

 

Check labels, especially on foods such as breakfast cereals and

snack products

 

Jo Butten of Consensus Action on Salt and Health

 

The children eating the highest salt diet had the highest levels of

blood pressure, even after other factors such as age, sex and weight

had been taken into account.

 

Every extra gram of salt consumed by the children was related to a

rise in systolic (peak) blood pressure of 0.44mmHg - which the

researchers say tallies with past studies linking high salt intake

with high blood pressure.

 

Professor Malcolm Law, professor of Epidemiology and Preventive

Medicine at the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, said the

findings were concerning.

 

RECOMMENDED DAILY MAXIMUM FOR SALT

0-6 months less than 1g

7-12 months 1g

1-3 years 2g

4-6 years 3g

7-10 years 5g

11-14 years 6g

Adults 6g

Source: Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition

 

" This confirms that eating more salt increases blood pressure in

childhood and also adds extra weight to the current public health

campaign to reduce salt in the UK diet. "

 

Jo Butten of Consensus Action on Salt and Health said: " The message

for parents is to check labels, especially on foods such as breakfast

cereals and snack products, which they may not expect to contain high

levels of salt, and choose the lower salt options.

 

" It may be difficult for parents to tell their children they can't

have crisps every day, or that they need to eat a different breakfast

cereal, or that some instant noodles should be avoided completely,

but surely it's a small price to pay to reduce their risk of having a

heart attack or stroke when they are older? "