It sure doesn't seem to be the oil leak problem in the Gulf. So it's a toss up whether the current Adminsitration and Congress will make illegal immigration, Cap & Trade, or control of the internet their next priority, but based on the increased commentary on salt intake, it looks like our salt shakers may a target:
Personally, I would like good information on what the salt content, etc. is in the foods I eat, and then choose for myself what is and isn't good for me. And I think if the government is successful in establishing salt mandates, it is inevitable that sugar content, fat content, simple carbohydrate content etc. controls are looming right over the horizon.
What do you think?
Federal War on Salt Could Spoil Country Hams
Reducing salt content threatens signature N.C. foods, restaurant fare
By Sara Burrows
May 23, 2010
RALEIGH — If the food police get their way, North Carolinians can kiss their country hams, bacon, and fresh Bright Leaf hot dogs goodbye. These Southern specialties might not disappear altogether, but, if the health agency’s crusade against salt is successful, they never will taste the same again.
The Washington Post reports that the Food and Drug Administration plans an unprecedented effort to reduce gradually Americans’ salt consumption.
In April, the Institute of Medicine advised the FDA to lower the recommended daily intake of sodium for individuals from 2,300 mg to 1,500 mg. It also recommended setting maximum legal limits on salt in all packaged and restaurant foods.
The plan is “to slowly ratchet down the sodium level, so people won’t notice the change,” said Christina DeWitt, a food scientist on the IOM advisory panel.
Still, critics of the proposal argue that, in isolation, limiting salt in the diet may not improve public health. Jacob Sullum, senior editor at Reason magazine, says there's little evidence linking low-salt diets to a reduced incidence of high blood pressure or cardiovascular disease.
Sullum cites a February 2009 New York Times op-ed column by Michael Alderman, a professor of epidemiology at the Albert Einstein College of medicine, which stated:
“[O]ver the past generation, while sodium intake in the United States appears to be increasing, deaths from heart attacks and strokes have declined by half," Alderman wrote. "It is also possible that a change in this single dietary element might disturb unknown nutritional interactions and thus generate other as yet unrecognized effects, good or bad.”
Just how much salt the FDA might cut has not yet been determined, but DeWitt said allowances might be made for inherently salty foods like brine cheeses, pickles, olives, and country ham.
More here:
Federal War on Salt Could Spoil Country Hams
Personally, I would like good information on what the salt content, etc. is in the foods I eat, and then choose for myself what is and isn't good for me. And I think if the government is successful in establishing salt mandates, it is inevitable that sugar content, fat content, simple carbohydrate content etc. controls are looming right over the horizon.
What do you think?
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