Salt reduction plan seen as key to curbing NCDs

The Public Health Ministry has made recommendations to reduce salt and sodium intake in an effort to combat the spread of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs ).

According to Somsak Thepsutin, the public health minister, the National Policy Committee on Salt and Sodium Consumption Reduction to reduce NCDs was chaired by the president of Thailand on Monday. The committee found that Thai people consumed salt and sodium much higher than a recommendation from the World Health Organization ( WHO ).

He said a 2009 ministry survey indicated that Thais consumed 4, 351.69 milligrams ( mg ) of sodium per person per day from their diets, which is twice the WHO’s recommendation of 2, 000mg per day. More than 22 million Thais experience from conditions related to potassium use, such as high blood pressure, liver disease, heart disease, and vascular condition.

Since 2016, we have worked hard to reduce sugar and sodium intake because we want Thai individuals to be well-off and stay away from NCDs, he said. However, the plan has not been completely implemented.

Dr Panumas Yanwetsakul, director-general of the Department of Disease Control ( DDC ), said this year’s salt and sodium reduction strategy consists of establishing, developing, and growing a collaborative network of stakeholders to monitor and reduce consumption throughout all provinces.

The government will also promote public awareness and understanding of reducing consumption across multiple channels, both online and offline, and support low-sodium products by introducing” Healthier Choice” or” Healthier Logo” labels to help identify low-sodium foods, he said.

In addition, the Foundation for Users, the Salt Reduction Network, the Kidney Friends Association of Thailand, and the Salt Reduction Network conducted a study of health knowledge in food items between May and June this time.

Tanapol Dokkaew, president of KFAT, reported that the survey collected 105 samples of seasonings and 302 samples of fast food. It discovered that 236 examples of instant pasta, including egg pasta, vermicelli, and cup noodles, had calcium levels ranging from 210 to 720 mg/person per serving, with 13 samples having raised calcium values and 15 samples having decreased calcium values in comparison to its earlier survey in 2021.

There are 420 mg of sodium per serving in 47 cereal and corn soup samples, with one sample having a higher sodium value and four samples having lower sodium values.

The group also analyzed 19 specimens of recipes, and it found that the sodium content remained constant even after 2021, with a range of 170 to 810 mg per serving.

” Fast food is a very popular choice. Although the food is now tasty, some people still want to add taste such as fish soup, soy sauce, and seasoning flour. They ought to realize that lowering the salt content and consuming no more than 2, 000 mg of sodium per day, he said, will increase the risk of numerous NCD diseases more than they think.