Author:

Keywords:

Science & Technology, Life Sciences & Biomedicine, Nutrition & Dietetics, SALT, Diet, Sodium-Restricted, Food Labeling, Humans, Hypertension, United States, United States Food and Drug Administration, 11 Medical and Health Sciences, 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences, 32 Biomedical and clinical sciences, 42 Health sciences

Abstract:

Nutrition Reviews has had a continuing interest in the scientific basis of arguments for and against health claims on foods. Such claims were first authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1993 under the terms of the Nutrition Labelling and Education Act of the U.S. Congress, passed in 1990. Since then there have been petitions that have resulted in a newly authorized claim for oats and other petitions directed toward modification or deletion of the originally approved claims. The Salt Institute, an industry-supported organization, has actively participated in the discussions regarding the sodium and hypertension health claim. The scientists signing this statement are familiar with the evolving understanding of the relationship between sodium and hypertension. The statement reviews more recent studies and critiques the arguments for a sodium health claim. We invite our readers to respond to the discussion in this controversial area of nutrition science and policy.