IS your weekly shop a hidden salt trap?
May 26th 2008
Too much salt raises blood pressure and can be a killer through heart disease or strokes.
But it seems that many supermarket foods are packed with the stuff.
New research from Consensus Action on Salt shows that leading brands of veggie sausages - often seen as a healthy option - contain dangerous levels of salt.
Quorn Sausages were found to contain up to 1g of salt per sausage - that's over 30 per cent of your daily 6g allowance per two sausages before you add the trimmings.
Other meat-free products contained as much salt as five packets of crisps.
Processed foods, crisps and snacks are known salt sinners, but what other 'healthy' foods contain hidden salt?
Asda's Chicken Tikka Masala with Pilau Rice is the worst ready meal, with 5g of salt per portion.
Kellogg's Corn Flakes pack in 1g of salt per serving and Rice Krispies contain 0.6g - that's more salt than a packet of salted crisps which has 0.5g.
And while Heinz Baked Beans contain 1.8g per 200g tin, Kwik Save, Somerfield or Morrisons beans have a massive 3g of salt per tin.
Marks and Spencer’s tomato-based pasta sauce contains 2g per 100g, more than twice the amount of Asda’s sauce with just 0.8 per 100g.
Fit Squad diet expert Amanda Ursell says: "Even though the recommended daily allowance is 6g, you should really aim for 3g of salt per day if you want to be healthy.
"Grams of salt are not always given on nutrition labels, but you can calculate the amount by multiplying grams of sodium by 2.5.
"One pinch of salt used in cooking is about 1g and salt cellars with multiple holes deliver about 1.3g of salt per shake.”
Supermarket salt swaps
SWAP Corn Flakes with 1g of salt per 40g bowl FOR Shredded Wheat, sugar-free muesli or porridge with no salt.
SWAP Cream crackers with 0.5g of salt per four FOR Matzos with no salt.
SWAP 10 olives in brine with 2g of salt FOR 10 olives in oil with no salt.
SWAP A 50g packet of crisps with 1g of salt FOR unsalted crisps with no salt.
SWAP 40g smoked salmon with 2.6g of salt FOR 100g grilled salmon with no salt.
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