Dr Bobby Ramasia, Principal Executive Officer of Bonitas Medical Fund.
As the deadline for the first set of targets to reduce the amount of salt used in an array of food items approaches, Dr Bobby Ramasia, Principal Executive Officer of Bonitas Medical Fund, says that reducing salt intake is the responsibility of all South Africans.
South Africa recently opted for legislative regulation to limit the salt content in a basket of products including bread, butter, cereals, crisps, processed meat, ready to eat soups, two-minute noodles amongst a basket of products. The regulation is to be phased in, with the first set of targets due to be met by June 2016.
The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) latest guidelines suggest that adults should consume less than 2,000 mg of sodium or 5 grams of salt per day.
Dr Ramasia says that people who habitually use salt on their food tend to be at a risk of developing hypertension, which increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.
According to expert estimates, South Africans consume on average more than 40g of salt a day, much of this intake coming from hidden salts in products targeted by the regulation.
“The freedom to add salt to your bowl of noodles or your cup of soup will always exist. However the growing reliance on processed and fast foods that contain higher amounts of salt can be seen in the high rate of obesity and related diseases prevalent in South Africa,” he says.
Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) or so called “lifestyle diseases” are responsible for approximately two in five deaths with the leading cause being cardiovascular diseases. The legislation is aimed at reducing the burden of the cost of treating NCDs.
According to a joint report by the Medical Research Council and the Wits Rural Public Health Unit, South Africa stands to save around R300-million a year if the population reduces its salt intake by just 0.85 grams a day.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation SA confirms that 6.3 million South Africans suffer from high blood pressure. Hypertension is associated with a myriad of debilitating diseases including aneurysm, enlarged left heart, coronary artery disease, heart failure, stroke and kidney failure amongst others.
“When you consider that many of these diseases afflict younger and more economically active people, you begin to see the damage of the excessive use of salt,” says Ramasia.
“In that context, and bearing in mind that many consumers do not take the time to read product labels, it is reasonable to compel food producers to limit salt at source.”
Ramasia points out that according to the Department of Health about 28% of South Africa’s healthcare costs are related to treating NCDs.
“We cannot effectively manage escalating healthcare costs without addressing the problem of lifestyle disease. If South Africans take responsibility for their health by making healthy lifestyle choices, the related savings in healthcare costs can be passed on to the members in the form of lower premiums.
While lifestyle diseases continue to be a major cause of deaths in many parts of the world, they are reaching epidemic proportions on the continent and projected to exceed deaths caused by communicable and maternal, perinatal diseases by 2030.
“The Department of Health’s policy governing salt content is a laudable initiative. South Africans should embrace this opportunity to head off threat,” he concludes.
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