A Pinch Of Salt ?

It’s time to wise up on salt and its health risks, and l earn easy ways to cut it out of your diet

We’re not born with a preference for salty food, it’s something we develop,’ says Sonia Pombo, nutritionist at Consensus Action on Salt and Health (CASH). ‘Like sugar, the more salt we eat, the more our taste buds adapt to the flavour, and the more we need. It’s been shown that if children eat a high-salt diet, they’ll continue doing so as adults. By reducing your salt intake or, ideally, cutting it out completely, you can retrain your taste buds in a few weeks.’ HIDDEN DANGERS Even if you don’t add salt to your food  during cooking or after, it’s the hidden  salts – in processed foods – that can  ramp up our intake, and often without us realising it. ‘Up to 75% of the salt in our diets is hidden in processed foods,’ says Sonia. ‘And this doesn’t just include salty foods like cheese and bacon, but everyday foods that don’t necessarily taste salty, such as bread. SNEAKY SALT SHOCKERS

BREAD

It’s not particularly salty itself, but because we eat so much of it, white bread makes up 11% of our daily salt intake, according to the National Diet and Nutrition Survey. Look for loaves with less than 0.4g per slice. Be careful with bakery goods, as they don’t provide nutritional info and slices may be thicker if you cut it yourself.

BACON