SILVER
SPRING, Md., Aug. 15,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration marked a milestone building on Phase I of its
voluntary sodium reduction targets and issued draft guidance
for Phase II in a data-driven, stepwise approach to help sodium
reduction across the food supply. Prior to 2021, consumer
intake was approximately 3,400 milligrams per day on average, far
higher than the limit recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for
Americans of 2,300 milligrams per day for those 14 years and older.
If finalized, the new set of voluntary targets would support
reducing average individual sodium intake to about 2,750 milligrams
per day. This reduction is approximately 20% lower than consumer
intake levels prior to 2021.
The Phase II voluntary sodium reduction targets follow an
initial set of targets issued in October 2021. The initial set of targets
encouraged the food industry to reduce sodium levels in a wide
variety of processed, packaged, and prepared foods. Preliminary
data from 2022 show about 40% of the initial Phase I targets are
very close to or have already been reached indicating early
success of this effort.
"Reducing sodium in the food supply has the potential to be
one of the most important public health initiatives in a
generation. The early successes we're seeing with sodium level
reduction in certain foods is encouraging and indicative of the
impact we believe our overall nutrition approach can have on the
wellbeing of society," said FDA Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods
Jim Jones. "In addition to our sodium reduction efforts, the FDA is
also actively working on a forthcoming final rule updating the
definition of the claim 'healthy,' a proposed rule for
front-of-package nutrition labeling and exploring ways to reduce
added sugars consumption. The FDA's sodium reduction and
other nutrition initiatives are central to a broader,
whole-of-government approach to help reduce the burden of
diet-related chronic diseases and advance health
equity."
The Phase II targets will continue to focus on commercially
processed, packaged, and prepared foods in the marketplace. This
guidance is particularly relevant as more than 70% of sodium intake
in the U.S. population comes from sodium added during food
manufacturing and commercial food preparation. The preliminary
Phase I data released today, along with public and external
feedback, informed the draft Phase II targets.
The U.S. faces an ever-growing epidemic of diet-related chronic
diseases. Too much sodium can raise blood pressure, a major risk
factor for heart disease and stroke. Strong scientific evidence
supports lowering sodium intake from current levels. Reducing
sodium intake has the potential to prevent hundreds of thousands of
premature deaths and illnesses in the coming years by helping to
reduce risk for heart disease and stroke. Because underserved
communities, including racial and ethnic minority groups,
experience high blood pressure at increased rates compared to the
overall average, reducing sodium in the food supply also could help
advance health equity for these populations.
The agency's sodium reduction initiative is part of the White
House National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition and Health to reduce
diet-related diseases by 2030. The FDA's Phase II voluntary sodium
reduction targets reflect what is known about achievable
reductions in different food categories, consumer acceptance, and
food safety, and align with the Healthy People 2030 goal of
reducing average individual sodium intake to approximately 2,750
milligrams per day in the U.S. The Phase II voluntary sodium
reduction targets also work in concert with the U.S. Department of
Agriculture's school meals sodium limits, so children have access
to healthy choices inside and outside of school.
Additional sodium-related actions the FDA has taken include: the
issuance of a proposed rule to amend the standards of identity
to permit the use of salt substitutes in foods for which salt is a
required or optional ingredient, and guidance on use of
the term "potassium salt" instead of "potassium chloride" to signal
consumers that the ingredient is a salt substitute.
The FDA will continue its stepwise approach to sodium reduction.
The agency will also issue a complete evaluation of industry's
progress against the Phase I targets when the data from 2024 become
available and are analyzed. The FDA expects to issue regular
evaluations of sodium levels in foods about every three years to
support its science-driven, transparent, and stepwise process.
Future phases of sodium reduction targets will be considered as
part of the agency's evaluation and monitoring of sodium reduction
progress in the marketplace, as well as monitoring of sodium intake
in the population.
Related Information
- 2024 Draft Guidance for Industry: Voluntary Sodium Reduction
Goals (Edition 2)
- Sodium Reduction in the U.S. Food Supply 2010-2022: A
Preliminary Assessment of Progress
- Constituent Update: FDA Starts Next Phase of Sodium Reduction
Efforts
- Sodium Reduction
Media Contact: Enrico
Dinges, 240-620-9293
Consumer Inquiries: 888-INFO-FDA
The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety,
effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines
and other biological products for human use, and medical devices.
The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our
nation's food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements,
radiation-emitting electronic products, and for
regulating tobacco products.
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/fda-announces-milestone-in-sodium-reduction-efforts-issues-draft-guidance-with-lower-target-levels-for-certain-foods-302223608.html
SOURCE U.S. Food and Drug Administration