Salt deep dive

Salt, or sodium, is a naturally occurring mineral found in many foods and is essential for the adequate functioning of our body, in small amounts. However, when consumed in large amounts, can pose a significant health risk. This risk is not immediate, rather an accumulative effect over the longer term, that has seen increasing rates of high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, stroke, with most Australian children and adults consuming excess amounts of salt. This excess intake is largely due to the increasing consumption of processed and packaged foods. It has become such a significant issue that salt intake has become a public health issue within Australia and New Zealand, with initiatives created to bring awareness to, and reduce, salt intake.

As mentioned above, salt is naturally occurring in foods like vegetables, fruit, meat, eggs and milk (breast and formula included). It is important to point out, that this salt is not the issue, rather the salt added to packaged foods, and added through cooking and when seasoning a meal.

How much can my little one have?

When determining the recommendations around salt intake, rather than a recommended dietary intake (RDI), an adequate intake (AI) figure has been developed. The AI is the average amount, based upon research, that has been shown to be adequate enough to meet physiological requirements (appropriate bodily function), without consuming excess amounts.

0-6 months: 120 mg/day (received naturally through breastmilk/formula)

7-12 months: 170 mg/day (large proportion through breastmilk/formula with minimal from food)

1-3 years: 200-400 mg/day

4-8 years: 300-600 mg/day

Packaged foods

I often get asked what is deemed an acceptable amount of salt in a packaged food. Ideally, when our little ones are young, we want to aim to avoid packaged foods as much as possible and when offering packaged food, aiming for no added salt. However, this isn’t always possible, so below is a guide to follow.

Great/everyday foods: < 125 mg per 100g

Okay/sometimes food (or small quantities): < 400 mg per 100g

Avoid: > 400mg per 100g

Now, I don’t want parents becoming stressed and obsessing over avoiding foods. I think it is really important to be informed with the above information, but also be realistic. If your little one as a day where they have eaten more salt than ideal, that’s ok, simply reduce the amount of salt offered for the rest of the week. Overall, instead of being hyper focused on salt intake, I like to suggest aiming for salt reduced options, avoiding adding salt to cooking (less important after 12mo) and avoiding adding salt after cooking.

Common foods

Sausages                           390mg in 1 sausage

Ham                                        381mg in 50g

Cheddar cheese                     138mg in 1 slice

Tomato paste                        211mg in 50g

Salt reduced tomato paste    18mg in 50g

Parmesan cheese                  121mg in 5g

Weetbix                                  89mg in 2 weetbix

Kids Weetbix                          4mg in 2 weetbix

Helgas wholemeal bread       145mg in 1 slice

Soy sauce                                969mg in 1 tbs

Coconut aminos                     9mg in 1 tbs (soy sauce alternative)

Massel veg stock                    329mg in 100ml        

Tomato sauce                          124 mg in 1 tbs