THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: High consumption of salt has been found to be one of the major reasons behind the alarming increase in incidence of hypertension and blood pressure in the state. As high as 69 per cent of the population was found to be consuming salt above the recommended level of 5 gm per day. This was revealed in the joint baseline survey carried out by Achutha Menon Centre which is part of Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) on the prevalence of Non Communicable Diseases (NCD) conducted across all 14 districts, which was released here on Tuesday.
The study found that on an average nearly one out of three adults above 18 years of age has hypertension and one out of five has diabetes. High consumption of salt is linked to both the medical conditions as it puts strain on the kidneys, arteries, heart and brain. According to experts an adult should not eat more than 5 gm of salt a day. Most of the salt consumed by people is hidden. More than 80 per cent of salt consumed comes in processed foods like bread, biscuits, breakfast cereals, ready to eat meals and takeaways. Only 15 to 20 per cent salt is from the cooked food at home.
Doctors say high consumption of salt puts additional strain on the arteries causing high blood pressure. Intake of salt above normal levels also affects kidneys especially among patients with diabetes. The study recommended bringing down the consumption of salt from 5 gm to less than 4 gm. Besides, it wanted the government to extend initiatives like fat tax on processed food to curtail high salt and sugar contents in food items.
