Adhering to the sodium intake levels recommended by the WHO could prevent 300,000 fatalities from heart disease and chronic kidney disease over the next decade, according to a modelling study conducted by the World Health Organisation.
Elevated sodium levels, which are found in salt, rank among the major dietary contributors to death and disability. In high-income nations, packaged foods serve as a primary source of sodium intake, and this trend is increasingly observed in low- and middle-income countries as well.
Nevertheless, researchers, including those from The George Institute for Global Health in Hyderabad, noted that India lacks a national strategy for reducing sodium intake, even though individuals are consuming twice the recommended amount alongside a growing consumption of packaged foods.
The WHO advises limiting sodium consumption to under two grams daily, equivalent to less than a teaspoon or about five grams of salt each day.
Research published in The Lancet Public Health journal indicated significant health improvements and financial benefits within the initial ten years of compliance, such as preventing 1.7 million cardiovascular incidents, like heart attacks and strokes, and 700,000 new cases of chronic kidney disease, alongside savings of USD 800 million.
The authors said that the results from the modelling make a strong case for India to mandate the implementation of WHO's sodium benchmarks, especially as people are increasingly consuming packaged food.
Slashing sodium intake in the population by 30 per cent by 2025 is one of nine global targets recommended by WHO for the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases.
Countries, including the UK, Argentina, and South Africa, have shown that setting targets regarding sodium content in packaged foods along with engaging food manufacturers to reformulate sodium to meet the targets, can effectively lower levels across packaged foods, and thereby reduce intake in the population, the authors said.
In India, few interventions address the issue of consuming high levels of sodium, they said.
Launched in 2018 by the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the current national initiative, 'Eat Right India', aims to educate people about healthy eating, including cutting down on sodium, the researchers said.
However, how adopting sodium targets for packaged foods could potentially impact intake across the country's population was not known, they said.
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