AMA Considers Recommendation on Sodium Reduction

The American Medical Association this week during an annual meeting of the AMA House of Delegates likely will recommend a 50% reduction in sodium in processed foods and meals prepared in restaurants to help reduce hypertension and prevent cardiovascular disease, the Chicago Tribune reports. The 544-member AMA House of Delegates might vote on the recommendation as early as Tuesday.

Dietary guidelines introduced last year by the federal government recommend consumption of less than 2,300 milligrams of sodium daily, but U.S. adults on average consume 4,000 to 6,000 milligrams of sodium daily. According to a 25-page report drafted by the AMA Council on Science and Public Health, FDA should improve the labels of processed foods to clarify the amount of sodium they contain and "develop label markings and warnings for foods high in sodium."

Some AMA delegates also said that food companies, restaurants and FDA should highlight the amount of sodium in products as they have highlighted trans fats. Other AMA delegates said that FDA should eliminate a rule that considers salt "generally recognized as safe" and allows food companies and restaurants to use an unlimited amount of salt (Jaspen/Schmeltzer, Chicago Tribune, 6/13).