Sodium Levels in Packaged Foods Sold in 14 Latin American and Caribbean Countries: A Food Label Analysis.

Joanne Arcand,Karla Benavides Aguilar,Mary L’Abbe,Branka Legetic,Adriana Blanco-Metzler

doi:10.3390/nu11020369

Abstract

Population-wide sodium reduction is a cost-effective approach to address the adverse health effects associated with excess sodium consumption. Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries consume excess dietary sodium. Packaged foods are a major contributor to sodium intake and a target for sodium reduction interventions. This study examined sodium levels in 12 categories of packaged foods sold in 14 LAC (n = 16,357). Mean sodium levels and percentiles were examined. Sodium levels were compared to regional sodium reduction targets. In this baseline analysis, 82% of foods met the regional target and 47% met the lower target. The greatest proportion of products meeting the regional target were uncooked pasta and noodles (98%), flavored cookies/crackers (97%), seasonings for sides/main dishes (96%), mayonnaise (94%), and cured/preserved meats (91%). A large proportion of foods met the lower target among uncooked pasta and noodles (88%), cooked pasta and noodles (88%), and meat/fish seasonings (88%). The highest the highest median sodium levels were among condiments (7778 mg/100 g), processed meats (870 mg/100 g), mayonnaise (755 mg/100 g), bread products (458 mg/100 g), cheese (643 mg/100 g), and snack foods (625 mg/100 g). These baseline data suggest that sodium reduction targets may need to be more stringent to enable effective lowering of sodium intake.

Highlights

Hypertension prevention and control in Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries is a priority action area for the World Health Organization (WHO) and Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease and stroke
American Network of Food Composition Data Systems (LATINFOODS), who have expertise and experience in food composition, were trained to collect data on and develop a database of foods pertaining to the 12 food categories that comprise the regional sodium reduction targets
The highest median sodium levels per 100 g were among condiments (7778 mg/100 g, range: 0 to 51,670 mg/100 g), processed meats (870 mg/100 g, range: 389 to 7000 mg/100 g), mayonnaise (755 mg/100 g, range 470 to 4000 mg/100 g), bread products (458 mg/100 g, range: to 4444 mg/100 g), cheese (643 mg/100 g, range: 274 to 14,740 mg/100 g), and snack foods

Summary

Introduction

Hypertension prevention and control in Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries is a priority action area for the World Health Organization (WHO) and Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease and stroke. Hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and accounts for nearly 1 in 5 deaths in LAC, with prevalence rates in many countries exceeding one-third of adults [2]. These rates are among the highest in the world. Excess dietary sodium (salt) is a significant causal risk factor in the development of hypertension and is associated with cardiovascular and stroke morbidity and mortality [3,4,5]. To reduce the health burden associated with excess sodium intake, the WHO set a global target of reducing dietary

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