2023-05-05 10:03:49
Everyone is talking about sugar, but there is also salt in many foods that we do not suspect. In an interview with MDR WISSEN, food chemist Thomas Henle from TU Dresden explains why salt is essential and yet threatens the health of thousands of people.
Professor Henle, why is there salt in our sweeteners?
In the vernacular, we usually understand “salt” to mean common table salt, i.e. sodium chloride. But sweeteners are also salts from a chemical perspective. They consist of cations and anions. The sodium content in the sweetener for table salt is extrapolated for the nutritional labeling in order to be able to estimate the contribution of sweeteners to the sodium intake. That’s all. A bit complicated.
Image rights: Thomas Henle
So the information about NaCl is only for the consumer on the sweetener?
Strictly speaking yes. Consumers should be able to see how much salt, which actually means sodium, they ingest daily. In fact, the amount of sodium you ingest from sweeteners doesn’t matter that much. It only becomes relevant when we talk about how much salt is ingested overall and possibly too much.
Image rights: IMAGO / teutopress
Are we consuming too much salt?
Yes. On average, we Germans eat too much of everything: too much fat, too much sugar and also too much salt.
Salts are important for the body…
Yes, of course. The body has to absorb salts, electrolytes are essential. The cells need salt to regulate body fluids and the kidneys also depend on it. In extreme cases, completely avoiding the intake of salt can even be life-threatening. However, we tend to consume more salt than we need. The German Society for Nutrition recommends six grams of salt a day, for the functioning of the body we need at least one to two grams of salt a day. According to consumption studies by the Federal Ministry of Nutrition, however, women consume around eight to nine grams of salt a day and men even consume more than ten grams of salt a day.
Why is this dangerous?
Too much salt can lead to high blood pressure and thus to cardiovascular diseases, which in turn are among the leading causes of death in industrialized countries. Studies have shown that the consumption of more than twelve grams of salt per day can definitely be linked to these diseases. To put it mildly, we eat more salt than recommended and should reduce it. In fact, I would strongly recommend that hypertensive patients monitor and minimize their salt intake.
There are many high blood pressure patients, almost every third adult has high blood pressure!
Yes, exactly. That is why the Federal Ministry of Food has adopted a reduction strategy for sugar, fat and salt. Companies in the food industry agreed to significantly reduce the salt content in food by 2025. They volunteered to revise their recipes.
Do you believe in it?
The signs are good, but it will be a challenge. The products should also taste good, since salt is a flavor carrier. Consumers will have to get used to less salt more slowly. This is difficult and can only be achieved together. Changing eating habits takes time, but the Ministry of Food and the industry are aware of the problem. Ultimately, no grocery chain benefits if customers die from heart attacks or strokes.
Which products are you talking about?
Bread contains large amounts of salt. German bread is the main source of salt – in 100 grams you will find 1.5 percent salt. The second heavily salted product group is meat and sausages. Incidentally, the high salt content also affects vegan substitute products. Third, ready meals contain a lot of salt, and their recipes are also due to be revised by 2025.
Salt as a problem child – many countries have bigger problems.
Don’t say that. Germany is one of the fattest countries in the world. In only a few countries are overweight and obesity – often associated with too much fat, salt and sugar – more pronounced than in Germany.
But not in the US?
The USA has more severely obese people, but Germany is not far behind here. Obesity is a problem in all industrialized countries, but it is particularly acute in some. You can see pretty well how the diet and weight of the population is changing in countries on the threshold of industrialized countries. This is where the obesity numbers are exploding.
In which foods do we find hidden salts?
Salt plays a central role in food production, both as a flavor carrier and for preservation. I’m careful with the wording “hidden salts”. The salt content is precisely indicated in the nutritional tables of the products. In this respect, I would rather speak of “unexpected salts”. In addition to bread and baked goods, you will find these in many canned vegetables, but also in cheese, especially in feta and hard cheese. Everything that tastes spicy and hearty also contains a lot of salt. You can find little salt in vegetables and fruit. But you have a lot of sugar in the fruit again. A glass of apple juice contains as much sugar as a glass of cola.
multi-layered. In any case, is less more?
Here in the industrialized countries. Food chemistry is struggling with two huge challenges worldwide. On the one hand, the problem of being overweight and the associated health consequences. On the other hand, many people in poorer countries are still starving. Added to this are the increasing world population and climate change. Food production contributes a large part to the formation of greenhouse gases. In order to feed everyone in the future, we not only have to question production methods, but also conduct intensive research into new food sources.
Do you mean insects?
For example insects. They provide proteins that have a biological value that is up to three times higher than, for example, grain proteins. Protein is the limiting factor because the amount of meat production is limited. We can no longer use so much cultivation area for animal feed, and then there are the moral and ethical questions about animal welfare.
What’s your idea?
At the TU Dresden, for example, we are researching mealworms. They are small but can be grown in large numbers. They are suitable as food for us, but also as animal feed. In addition, keeping them is easier and takes up much less space. The nutritional value is about as high as that of chicken meat.
So mealworms can be an alternative?
Further research will show that. In principle, however, it would be advisable to question and reduce your own meat consumption. This definitely does not mean that everyone has to become vegetarian or even vegan. Maybe it’s enough just to think back to the time when meat was only eaten once or twice a week. So less the daily cheap meat product, and now and then high-quality meat. Incidentally, that would also help to solve the salt problem in order to draw the bow to the starting point. Basically, I would like us to learn again to appreciate our food in general. We should have more respect for our food, for its production and production.
This topic in the program:MDR NEWS | Listeners make the program | 02 May 2023 | 8:20 a.m
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