Simulating the impact of sodium reduction from packaged foods on population sodium intake in US adults and children

Abstract

Objective: To simulate the impact that Na reductions in food categories that are the largest contributors to dietary Na intake would have on population Na intake from packaged foods among US adults and children.

Design: 24 h Dietary recall data were used. For each store-bought packaged food product reported by participants, we generated sales-weighted Na content at the median and 25th percentile using Nutrition Facts Panel data from 193 195 products purchased by US households. The impact that Na reductions would have on population Na intake, overall and by sociodemographic subgroup, was examined.

Settings: US households.

Participants: Children aged 2-18 years (n 2948) and adults aged >18 years (n 4878), 2011-2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

Results: Na intake from packaged foods was 1258 (se 21) mg for adults and 1215 (se 35) mg for children. Top-ten packaged food group sources contributed 67 % of Na intake. For adults and children, there was a decrease of 8·7 % (109 mg) and 8·0 % (97 mg), respectively, in Na intake if the top-ten sources reduced Na from the median to the 25th percentile. Although absolute reduction in intake varied between sociodemographic subgroups, significant differences were not observed.

Conclusions: The study demonstrated that if Na reduction shifted the top-ten packaged food group sources of dietary Na intake from the median to 25th percentile, population Na intake would be reduced by 9 % in US adults and children. These findings will help inform the US government's Na reduction targets, as well as policy makers' understanding of differences in intake of critical sub-populations in the USA.

Keywords: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey; Packaged foods; Reformulation; Sodium intake.

Fig. 1

Proportion of sodium intake from packaged foods contributed by the top-ten food group sources, by sociodemographic subgroup, for 4878 US adults aged >18 years () and 2948 children aged 2–18 years () from the 2011–2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NH, non-Hispanic; FPL, federal poverty level). Authors’ analyses and calculations based in part on data reported by Nielsen through its Homescan Services for all food categories, including beverages and alcohol, for the 2011–2012 period for the US market (licensed from The Nielsen Company, 2014)

Fig. 2

Mean daily sodium intake from packaged foods () and simulated reductions in mean daily sodium intake from packaged foods if sodium levels were reduced from the median to the 25th percentile sodium content of purchased products for the top-ten food groups () and for all packaged foods (), by sociodemographic subgroup, for 4878 US adults aged >18 years and 2948 children aged 2–18 years from the 2011–2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. (a) Gender (*significantly greater percentage reduction than the other gender, P < 0·05); (b) income (FPL, federal poverty level; *significantly greater percentage reduction compared with <185 % FPL, P < 0·05); (c) education; (d) race/ethnicity (NH, non-Hispanic; *significantly greater percentage reduction than NH White, P < 0·05; †significantly greater percentage reduction than Hispanic, P < 0·05); (e) weight status (*significantly greater percentage reduction than overweight, P < 0·05). Authors’ analyses and calculations based in part on data reported by Nielsen through its Homescan Services for all food categories, including beverages and alcohol, for the 2011–2012 period for the US market (licensed from The Nielsen Company, 2014)