NO MORE THAN 6grams A DAY FOR ADULTS

Lots of people think they dont eat much salt, especially if they don’t add it to their food. But don’t be so sure!

Every day in the UK 85% of men and 69% of women eat too much salt. Adults (and children 11 and over) should have no more than 6g salt a day. Younger children should have even less.

Three-quarters of the salt we eat is already in the food we buy, such as some breakfast cereals, soups, sauces, bread and ready meals. Some you could easily be eating too much salt without realising it.

Eating too much salt can raise you blood pressure. People with high blood pressure are three times more likely to develop heart disease or have a stroke than people with normal blood pressure.

How do I know if food is high in salt?

Read the label and look at the figure for salt per 100g.

High is more than 1.5g salt per 100g (of 0.6g sodium).

Low – is 0.3g salt or less per 100g (or 0.1g sodium).

If the amount of salt per 100g is in between these figures, then that is a medium level of salt.

Remember that the amount you eat of a particular food affects how much salt you will get from it.

Dont forget to read the labels on different foods and try to choose the lower salt option. If we eat too many foods that are high in salt, it can be very easy to have a lot of salt.

Updated 16/4/11 DH