New York seeks national reduction of salt in food

New York has partnered with cities, states and national health organizations across the country with the goal of cutting the salt in packaged and restaurant foods gradually by 25 percent over five years. Doing that would reduce the nation’s salt intake by 20 percent, Angell said.

The average American adult consumes about 3,400 to 3,500 milligram of sodium a day, while most people only need about 1,500, she said. The excess sodium does not come from salting food at the table or while cooking, but from pre-packaged food and restaurant meals, which Angell said amount to nearly 80 percent of the average person’s total sodium intake.

“Consumers can always add salt to food, but they can’t take it out,” Dr. Thomas Farley, the city’s health commissioner, said in a written statement. “If we can reduce the sodium levels in packaged and restaurant foods, we will give consumers more choice about the amount of salt they eat and reduce their risk of heart disease and stroke in the process.”