A new study by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) reveals that adults in England are consuming significantly more salt than official health guidelines recommend, averaging a daily intake equivalent to the salt found in 22 bags of crisps. This hidden salt consumption, which amounts to an average of 8.4 grams per day, 40% above the 6g Government maximum, is identified by health experts as a major contributor to high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.
Crucially, most of this excessive salt does not come from salt shakers but is "hidden" in processed and pre-prepared foods like bread, cereals, ready meals, and sauces. This makes it difficult for consumers to track and means that effective efforts to cut intake must focus on food manufacturing practices, not just individual behaviour change. Excessive salt intake is directly linked to high blood pressure (hypertension), a leading risk factor for heart attacks and strokes. Estimates suggest that too much salt contributes to approximately 5,000 cardiovascular deaths a year in the UK. Given that around one in three UK adults has high blood pressure (many unknowingly), population-wide salt reduction is a critical public health priority.
Campaigners, including Action on Salt and the BHF, are urging the Government to move beyond current voluntary schemes. They advocate for legally binding salt reduction targets across all food categories, with clear timelines and penalties for non-compliance, arguing this would be far more effective than relying on voluntary industry changes. Mandatory front-of-pack labelling is another proposed measure to help consumers easily identify and choose lower-salt alternatives.
Scientific evidence supports this push for regulation: past regulatory efforts in the 2000s successfully lowered average salt intake in England. When these policies were relaxed, progress stalled, a relaxation analysts have linked to thousands of additional cardiovascular disease cases, underscoring the health cost of policy inaction. While the food industry has made some progress, some major UK manufacturers' products contain about 31% less salt than a decade ago, health experts stress that more consistent, structural action is required across the entire food supply to achieve safe population levels. This stark finding, the 22-bag-of-crisps equivalent, underscores the need for policy, industry action, consumer education, and stronger regulation to align and address this significant, silent public health challenge.
