What if sodium in packaged foods was reduced for an entire continent?

Reformulating packaged foods in Australia to contain less sodium might save about 1,700 lives per year and prevent nearly 7,000 annual diagnoses of heart disease, kidney disease and stomach cancer, according to new research published today in Hypertension, an American Heart Association journal.

High sodium intake increases blood pressure, risk of heart disease and stroke, chronic kidney disease and stomach cancer. To reduce the incidence of these conditions, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends reducing the population-wide average sodium intake by 30% by 2025, which limits total daily sodium intake per person to about 2 grams (g), or 2,000 milligrams (mg), per day.

Please refer to the media release from the American Heart Association on this page for details.