FOPH projects confirm: It’s possible to use less salt
Bern, 14.11.2011 - The results of a national study commissioned by the Federal Office of Public Health confirm that people in Switzerland use too much salt. The study was carried out as part of the FOPH’s Salt Strategy 2008 – 2012, the aim of which is to reduce salt consumption. The Salt Strategy is being implemented as one aspect of the National Nutrition and Physical Activity Programme 2008 – 2012. In a further project, the University of Applied Sciences in Berne has identified ways of reducing the amount of salt used in the food industry and community catering (e.g. in staff restaurants and university restaurants) without impairing flavour.
The national study commissioned by the FOPH was carried out by Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV). Around 1,500 people were asked about their salt consumption and tested for hypertension. The results show that the daily salt intake of the Swiss population is well above the maximum daily level of 5 g per person recommended by the WHO. An average of 9.1 g of salt per person per day is consumed in Switzerland, with men having a higher intake at 10.6 g per day than women (7.8 g per day). The study also showed that 25.6% of the individuals tested had high blood pressure. Again, men were more frequently affected (32.3%) than women (19.1%).
A high salt intake increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. The study was part of the FOPH's Salt Strategy 2008 - 2012, the aim of which is to gradually reduce salt consumption to below 8 g per person and day by 2012. This is because a high salt consumption increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Two follow-on projects identified ways of reducing salt intake.
The Swiss College of Agriculture SHL cooperated with partners in industry to examine the technical feasibility, food safety aspects and acceptability in terms of taste of reducing the salt content of selected food products in the categories bread and baked goods, cheese and cheese products, meat products and convenience meals. The results show that it is technically feasible to reduce the salt content of food to the extent tested in the project without affecting food safety. Moreover, all the salt-reduced products were tested by consumers and found to be acceptable. In some cases the testers even preferred the lower-salt version. The project team therefore established target values for the salt content of 11 groups of products that were felt to be achievable in the short term and put forward recommendations for reducing salt.
The Health section of Berne University of Applied Sciences (BUAS) investigated the way salt is incorporated into meals prepared in by community caterers, from the starting products to the point at which the meals are served. The University and interested partners in the industry used the results to derive five measures that could reduce the amount of salt eaten in community caterers' meals over the longer term. Specifically, these are the creation of a database showing the salt content of products, the development of recipes for balanced meals that contain less salt and taste good, optimisation of self-service portions and the provision of alternative seasonings (e.g. herbs and spices). These measures need to be flanked by "on-the-job" training for catering professionals, starting with trainee chefs. As stated in the Swiss quality standards for health-promoting community-catered food, the aim is to reduce salt consumption without affecting taste.
Both projects are additionally supporting the "actionsanté" initiative launched by the FOPH in 2009. "actionsanté" provides companies with a way of optimising their products and activities on a voluntary basis and at the same time contributing to the health of the Swiss population. The FOPH will now define a joint approach to reducing salt in conjunction with food producers and the catering industry and will continue to monitor the situation.
Address for enquiries
Federal Office of Public Health, Michael Beer, Head of the Food Safety Division
Phone: 031 322 95 05, E-mail: media@bag.admin.ch
Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Prof. Michel Burnier, Head of Nephrology Department, Phone: 021 314 11 54, E-mail:
Berne University of Applied Sciences, Swiss College of Agriculture (SHL)
Susan Zülli, Lecturer in Food Technology, Food Science & Management
Phone: 031 910 21 15, E-mail:
Berne University of Applied Sciences, Health section, Sigrid Beer-Borst
Lecturer in Applied Research & Development, Nutrition and Dietetics
Phone: 031 848 35 86, E-mail:
Links
Publisher
Federal Office of Public Health
http://www.bag.admin.ch
