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. 2021 Aug;83(3):589-599.
doi: 10.18999/nagjms.83.3.589.

Dietary salt intake and its correlates among adults in a slum area in Dhaka, Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study

Fahmida Afroz Khan  1 , Md Khalequzzaman  1 , Md Hasan  1 , Sohel Reza Choudhury  2 , Chifa Chiang  3 , Atsuko Aoyama  3   4 , Syed Shariful Islam  1
Affiliations

Dietary salt intake and its correlates among adults in a slum area in Dhaka, Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study

Fahmida Afroz Khan et al. Nagoya J Med Sci. 2021 Aug.

Abstract

High dietary salt intake increases the risk of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). NCDs are increasing among the urban poor in Bangladesh, but the data of their dietary salt intake are yet scarce. This study aimed to explore the amount of dietary salt intake among adults in an urban slum area in Dhaka, Bangladesh. A cross-sectional community-based study was conducted. We randomly selected 100 residents (39 men and 61 women) aged 20-59 years without history of NCDs. A modified World Health Organization standard instrument was used for behavioral risk factor assessment and physical measurements. Dietary salt intake was estimated from the measurement of sodium (Na) excretion in spot urine samples.The estimated mean dietary salt intake was 7.8 ± 2.5 g/day, and the mean Na/potassium (K) ratio in urine was 4.9 ± 3.4. More than half (54%) of them always took additional salt in their meals, but only 6% of them consumed 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables per day. A quarter of them perceived salt reduction not at all important. Increased mean salt intakes were marginally associated with lower waist circumference and lower waist-hip ratio. Dietary salt intake among urban slum residents was higher than the recommended level of 5 g/day; however, its association with NCD risk factors was not significant. Further studies are required to identify the urban poor specific factors.

Keywords: Bangladesh; dietary salt intake; noncommunicable diseases; slum residents; spot urine sodium excretion.

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Conflict of interest statement

All authors declared that no competing interest exist. This study was conducted by the in-house research budget of the Department of Public Health and Informatics, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University.

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