Sodium reduction
Although many advocates of the original 2016 draft guidance felt the FDA had not made enough of a reduction citing the increase to 3,000mg in 2021, it is apparent that the FDA recognised the important role salt plays in food formulation and the challenges manufacturers face with reformulation. Although the US has not been as aggressive as other countries at encouraging sodium reduction either by use of FOPLWs, legislation, taxes or voluntary efforts, they are making efforts to improve the foods people eat. The FDA’s concept is to work with the food industry, make sodium reduction gradual to adjust the consumer palate to new tastes and give the industry time to reformulate their foods. Once the interim target of 3,000mg intake per day is met following the two-and-a- half year benchmark, the FDA plans to continue with new targets for reaching deeper reductions at a ten-year benchmark.
Think outside the box
More than 70% of total sodium intake in the US is from salt added during manufacturing and in restaurant food. The 2020-25 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommended that the daily intake of sodium for adults and children over 14 should be no more than 2,300mg per day. Many countries are making significant efforts to reduce sodium by using a wide array of different methods. While those methods are a step in the right direction, there is another way to make food healthier without removing the flavour or functionality of salt, and that is by replacing some or all of the sodium salt with potassium salt. Potassium salt is not a new discovery and has been known for a very long time. However, what is new about it and its use in food is the way it is washed and dried to create a new salt crystal. Its use in this way is also supported by many studies that help us understand the benefits of increasing potassium levels for a healthier diet.
One of the largest-scale studies performed to test the effects of balancing sodium and potassium in salt was undertaken in rural China and gives the best indication of the benefits of balancing sodium and potassium. The study, which was held in 600 rural Chinese villages in five provinces and involved 20,000 participants who had a history of stroke or were over 60 years old with high blood pressure, was made over a five-year period. The results of the study found that replacing sodium salt with a balanced salt of sodium and potassium, significantly lowered the risk of stroke, heart disease and death.
Another similar study was done by the George Institute in rural India. Nearly 500 participants were randomly given either regular salt or a salt blended with 30% potassium salt. After three months, the group with the salt that contained 30% potassium
Ingredients Insight /
www.ingredients-insight.com Heading down a new path
The results of both studies show strong support for potassium salt being an effective, low-cost solution to reducing sodium and lowering blood pressure. While there are concerns with how far manufacturers can reduce sodium without causing flavour or function loss, adding potassium salt, which has the same traits as salt but without the sodium, is the best solution.
Other studies have shown similar results that lowering sodium while increasing potassium were more effective than reducing sodium alone. This is due to how the body reacts to sodium and potassium. Potassium levels often go down when sodium levels go up, and studies have shown that lowering sodium while increasing potassium can lower the risk of heart disease. The easiest way for sodium levels to decrease while increasing potassium levels is to remove and replace some of the sodium from the salt in processed, packaged and prepared foods with potassium. Potassium salt has been around for a long time indeed, and has proven to provide the same functionality as salt across many food categories. As times have changed and consumers and public policy have demanded greater reductions of sodium, potassium salt has become an ingredient of choice in many food R&D kits. More importantly, research has been done and has resulted in evidence that makes potassium salt a compelling solution to high sodium content found in the global food system. Whether governments have voluntary or mandatory policies, warning labels, taxes or incentives for people to change their habits and become more health- conscious, important changes are being made globally to provide healthier food, and reducing sodium intake is a critical piece of that puzzle. ●
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salt showed a substantial reduction in systolic blood pressure of hypertensive patients.
Replacing sodium salt with potassium salt lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Andrii Horulko/
Shutterstock.com
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