26/08/10
Beware hidden salt in ‘healthy’ salads, shoppers
warned
One in ten salads contains more salt than a
Big Mac, according to a new survey.
A survey of 270 salad and pasta bowls found
many salads from supermarkets, high street cafes
and fast food outlets provided more than half our daily 6g
allowance of salt for an adult.
Victoria Taylor, senior heart health dietitian
at the British Heart Foundation, said: “If you’re trying to look
after your heart health by having a salad instead of fast food it
can be frustrating to find your supposedly healthy option comes
laden with salt.
“Some of the salads in this survey provide
more than half the recommended daily amount of salt for an adult in
just one dish. Over time, eating a diet high in salt can increase
your risk of raised blood pressure,
which is linked to heart disease and
stroke.
“While it’s encouraging that some products
have been reformulated since the last survey in 2005, we clearly
need to go further to give people a broader choice
for lunch on the go with options that are healthy in terms of salt
as well as calories, fat and sugar. These need to be
clearly labelled too so people know what’s really
in the food they buy.”
The survey was carried out by Consensus Action on Salt and
Health (CASH).
