WHO / SALT INTAKE

STORY: WHO / SALT INTAKE
TRT: 3:13
SOURCE: WHO
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 09 MARCH 2023, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

SHOTLIST:
1.Wide shot, Branca at the interview
2.SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Francesco Branca, Director, WHO Department of Nutrition and Food Safety:
“Excess sodium consumption is the top risk factor for an unhealthy diet. One of the main risk factors for the global burden of disease. About 1.8 million lives every year are claimed because of this very simple behavior that we have in our diet. Excess sodium consumption is responsible for a high rate of cardiovascular disease and strokes, as well as cancer, particularly gastric cancer.”
3.Wide shot, Branca at the interview
4.SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Francesco Branca, Director, WHO Department of Nutrition and Food Safety:
“WHO has decided to put together a report that maps the policy response to high sodium intake. We are aware of the problem. We've been aware of the problem for years. Member states have decided to set themselves a goal to reduce by 30 percent the consumption of salt but unfortunately, we're not on track to achieve that target. So WHO really is calling the attention on the need to accelerate the policy response.
5.Wide shot, Branca at the interview
6.SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Francesco Branca, Director, WHO Department of Nutrition and Food Safety:
“It's not just about informing consumers, but it's about nudging food manufacturers to change the formulation of their products and reduce sodium in different categories of products. Our taste can be adjusted very easily in a matter of weeks, and that's why we can actually go from the consumption of high salt products to products, the same products which contain slightly less salt each time. This is the strategy that governments are using. The progressive reduction of the salt content in different categories of food.”
7.Wide shot, Branca at the interview
8.SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Francesco Branca, Director, WHO Department of Nutrition and Food Safety:
“The WHO recommends that we don't consume more than five grams of salt every day. This is roughly a teaspoon of salt. But we need to remember that a lot of it is already contained in the food we eat every day. If we are able to reduce the amount of salt in the manufactured food, that's the best way to reduce our salt intake. Then the salt we add to the food in cooking or at the table is also can also be reduced. So maybe a good tip would be not to have the saltshaker on your table or maybe use a smaller one, which makes it more difficult to put salt on the food.”

9.Wide shot, Branca at the interview
10.SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Francesco Branca, Director, WHO Department of Nutrition and Food Safety:
“If we could reduce the consumption of sodium and apply these policies, we would be able to save 7 million lives in the next few years until the year 2030.”
10. Wide shot, Branca at the interview


STORYLINE:
A first-of-its-kind World Health Organization (WHO) Global report on sodium intake reduction shows that the world is off-track to achieve its global target of reducing sodium intake by 30 percent by 2025.

Sodium, an essential nutrient, increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and premature death when eaten in excess. The main source of sodium is table salt (sodium chloride), but it is also contained in other condiments such as sodium glutamate. The report shows that only 5 percent of WHO Member States are protected by mandatory and comprehensive sodium reduction policies and 73 percent of WHO Member States lack full range of implementation of such policies.

Implementing highly cost-effective sodium reduction policies could save an estimated 7 million lives globally by 2030. It is an important component of action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal target of reducing deaths from noncommunicable diseases. But today, only nine countries (Brazil, Chile, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Spain and Uruguay) have a comprehensive package of recommended policies to reduce sodium intake.

“Unhealthy diets are a leading cause of death and disease globally, and excessive sodium intake is one of the main culprits,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “This report shows that most countries are yet to adopt any mandatory sodium reduction policies, leaving their people at risk of heart attack, stroke, and other health problems. WHO calls on all countries to implement the ‘Best Buys’ for sodium reduction, and on manufacturers to implement the WHO benchmarks for sodium content in food.”

A comprehensive approach to sodium reduction includes adopting mandatory policies and WHO’s four “best buy” interventions related with sodium which greatly contribute to preventing noncommunicable diseases. These include:
1. Reformulating foods to contain less salt, and setting targets for the amount of sodium in foods and meals
2. Establishing public food procurement policies to limit salt or sodium rich foods in public institutions such as hospitals, schools, workplaces and nursing homes
3. Front-of-package labelling that helps consumers select products lower in sodium
4. Behaviour change communication and mass media campaigns to reduce salt/sodium consumption

Countries are encouraged to establish sodium content targets for processed foods, in line with the WHO Global Sodium Benchmarks and enforce them though these policies.

Mandatory sodium reduction policies are more effective, as they achieve broader coverage and safeguard against commercial interests, while providing a level playing field for food manufacturers. As part of the report, WHO developed a Sodium country score card for Member States based on the type and number of sodium reduction policies they have in place.

“This important report demonstrates that countries must work urgently to implement ambitious, mandatory, government-led sodium reduction policies to meet the global target of reducing salt consumption by 2025,” said Dr Tom Frieden, President and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, a not-for-profit organization working with countries to prevent 100 million deaths from cardiovascular disease over 30 years. “There are proven measures that governments can implement and important innovations, such as low sodium salts. The world needs action, and now, or many more people will experience disabling or deadly—but preventable—heart attacks and strokes.”

The global average salt intake is estimated to be 10.8 grams per day, more than double the WHO recommendation of less than 5 grams of salt per day (one teaspoon). Eating too much salt makes it the top risk factor for diet and nutrition-related deaths. More evidence is emerging documenting links between high sodium intake and increased risk of other health conditions such as gastric cancer, obesity, osteoporosis and kidney disease.

WHO calls on Member States to implement sodium intake reduction policies without delay and to mitigate the harmful effects of excessive salt consumption. WHO also calls on food manufacturers to set ambitious sodium reduction targets in their products.