Canada took the first steps to reduce their nation’s overall salt intake today in Ottawa with a report that included six general and twenty-seven specific recommendations on reducing sodium consumption. A group chaired by Health Canada released the report that encourages voluntary changes in food manufacturing, labeling, and changes in sodium awareness on menus in restaurants. The goal is to change the average Canadian’s sodium intake of 3,400 mg/day to a maximum of 2,300 mg/day. Bringing the maximum daily sodium intake down by 1/3 is the first step towards the healthiest level of adult sodium consumption, which is 1,500 mg/day. Even the first step of change in salt intake will greatly reduce incidence of high blood pressure, stroke, heart attack, kidney disease, and heart failure. The panel estimates that such reduced salt levels could prevent the premature death of thirty to forty Canadians a day, or 11,000 to 15,000 people a year.

Critics point to Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq’s refusal to turn the recommendations of the panel into enforceable health regulations, but the Minister did welcome the release of the blueprint, as well as the further research and yearly reports on success that the group outlined.

In Canada, one in four people live with hypertension and sodium is responsible for 3/4 of that. The rate is slightly higher in the US, at 29% of the population with the medical condition. The FDA and US Department of Agriculture have long wanted to limit salt intake in manufactured food, but critics disagree that an increased salt intake has any negative affect on the health of an adult, and others deny the right of the federal government to dictate how much salt is too much for a private citizen to consume. According to government data, American men consume an average of 4,178 mg/day, and American women consume 2,933 mg/day.