Nigerians have been advised to reduce their salt intake in food and drinks as excessive consumption puts people at risk of premature death.
According to health experts, salt is important in our daily lives, but it can be fatal if taken less than the recommended amount.
This was the warning issued to Nigerians at a recent training organised by the Corporate Accountability & Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) in collaboration with Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI) on Salt and its role in NCDs and Industrial Monitoring in Lagos State.
At the workshop, participant journalists were informed about the effects of excessive salt and its effects on public health, the necessity of salt regulations for processed foods and monitoring the sector.
The training was organized as part of a campaign to educate and sensitize Nigerians to be mindful of their daily salt intake.
Research shows that in addition to many short-term effects to consider, there are also long-term effects of eating too much salt. Increased heart rate can increase the risk of headaches, heart failure, high blood pressure, kidney disease, kidney stones, osteoporosis, stomach cancer, and stroke. The most serious side effects occur when consumers consume large amounts of salt over a long period of time.
Nigeria currently records a daily salt intake of 2.8 grams and 10 grams; It is twice the amount that the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends consuming more than 5 grams per day. Therefore, WHO said that reducing salt is a public health strategy that can reduce the burden of non-communicable diseases and improve health and the economy. conditions.
During the workshop, food and nutrition expert, Bukola Olukemi Odele, who also works as the Cardiovascular Health (CHV) Director at CAPPA, gave an overview of the salt reduction campaign in Nigeria.
She said WHO identified NCDs as the leading cause of death and disability in the world, accounting for 29% of all deaths in Nigeria.
“Approximately two million deaths each year are linked to a high-salt diet,” Odele said. Reducing salt intake is an important step in reducing NCD mortality and improving cardiovascular health. “
Above the World Health Organization recommendation, he reported that Nigeria recorded an average daily salt intake of between 2.8g and 10g, adding that high sodium intake (>2g/day, equivalent to 5g of salt per day) contributes to elevated blood sugar.” and increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease.
“I want to say that reducing sodium intake significantly reduces blood pressure in adults. Salt reduction is a cost-effective public health intervention that adopts a multi-sectoral approach to tackle the NCD burden,” she said.
She noted that WHO in its global action for salt reduction advocates for the formulation of sodium-related policies and practical actions that should be implemented to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease.
Odele enjoined the Nigerian media to help push the advocacy on salt reduction to the grassroots and to all the nooks and crannies of the country by making salt reduction a priority issue on the public agenda, increasing awareness about the public health and economic consequences of high salt intake, educate the public on practical ways to reduce salt consumption, deliberately use data and information received from collaborators to shape public opinion about salt reduction, convey strategic and well-tailored reportage to advocate for mandatory salt regulation for processed and packaged foods, create a climate of opinion based on facts to counter industry tactics and discredit misleading information from its allies and maintain a standpoint that promotes the public health benefit of salt reduction over personal gain or industry profit.
Dr. Jerome Mafeni, Technical Advisor at NHED, speaking on Salt Consumption in Nigeria, the Need for Policy Intervention revealed that key salt reduction measures will generate an extra year of healthy life for a cost that falls below the average annual income or gross domestic product per person while reducing salt intake to less than 5 grams per day (about 1 teaspoon) will save around 2.5m lives every year.
Dr Mafeni said that while the WHO in 2013 agreed to nine global voluntary targets for the prevention and control of NCDs, which includes a 30% relative reduction in the intake of salt by the Year, 2025, the global health body also developed a SHAKE technical package in 2016 to assist member states with the development, implementation and monitoring of salt reduction strategies, Nigeria is still far from getting nearer the target as estimated salt intake in Nigeria is still as high as 5.8 g/day higher than the WHO recommended maximum level. There has been a rapid transition from infectious diseases to increasingly non-communicable diseases with the overall age-standardized prevalence of hypertension in Nigeria is 38.1%.
On a sad note, the country recorded an estimated over 100,000 deaths from cardiovascular diseases in 2017. The figures might have been on the increase by today.
Dr Mafeni, however, proposed some policy strategies to help reduce salt intake among Nigerians. These include setting salt targets by developing mandatory salt reduction targets for food manufacturers and food service industries. Education and Awareness Campaign by utilising the mass media, and social media to educate the general population about the risk of excessive salt. Food Labelling Regulations to advocate mandatory clear and standard labelling on the sodium content of packaged foods and Regulation Advocacy to give mandatory salt reduction regulation that will facilitate salt reduction efforts.
“By implementing salt reduction targets, we not only address the immediate health consequences of high sodium intake, but also provide a pathway to long-term benefits in reducing the burden of heart and other diseases.
“Tackling water saltiness in Nigeria will improve public health and benefit all Nigerians. Let’s all prioritize salt reduction and take concrete steps to achieve our goals.”
Dr. Mafeni said salt consumption habits and Nigerians’ attitudes towards salt reveal why Nigerians consume too much salt in their diets.
Vanessa Alfa of the University of Abuja Cardiovascular Research Unit in her presentation on Nigeria Sodium Study Findings, a research work on Nigerian Sodium/Salt consumption patterns and Nigerian Perspectives on Salt revealed reasons Nigerians consume more of salt in their foods.
According to her, many Nigerians are unaware of the effects of salt in food, adding that while many people know that high salt intake is a problem in Nigeria, unhealthy diet leads to an increase in high blood pressure and other chronic diseases. Although there is little information about salt in cooking in general, many Nigerians are unaware of the adverse health effects of excessive salt intake.
The study also revealed that most Nigerians are accustomed to certain tastes that are difficult to change, but many people, especially those living in rural areas, do not distinguish between healthy and unhealthy foods in terms of nutritional satisfaction. For some people, too much salt makes food taste better.
“Salt is a great flavour enhancer and is used to modify the taste of other expensive spices. Eat homemade foods, especially highly processed foods.”
In her conclusion, Alfa states that if households want to improve the campaign against high salt content among Nigerians, they need to know more about the dos and don’ts of daily salt use and that cooperation and participation on many issues is needed. sectors. Leaders who will put Nigeria on the path to achieving the global salt reduction target, with strong governance, governance processes and accountability mechanisms. The importance of media in raising awareness and highlighting the need for political action to find solutions to public health problems associated with high salinity and the benefits of salt management.