NHF urges Jamaicans to cut salt intake

With roughly 180,000 people registered with the National Health Fund (NHF) living with high blood pressure, a lifestyle change to a low-salt diet is strongly being encouraged by the organisation.

According to Hugh Lawson, NHF chief executive officer, the figure makes up nearly 30 per cent all of beneficiaries and as this week is being observed internationally as Salt Awareness Week, the NHF will be embarking on an awareness campaign.

According to the Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey 2007-2008, more than 90 per cent of people living with hypertension were not on a low-salt diet and only two per cent of Jamaicans between the ages of 15-74 had actively lessened their salt intake.

Only 60 per cent of women and men living with diabetes had lessened salt consumption, along with just half of those who had suffered from a heart attack.

Lawson noted that the lifestyle change would reduce the risk for heart attacks and strokes in men and women.

The national organisation will be distributing educational material to health-care facilities, as well as pharmacies, while offering free blood-pressure checks at the customer-care centre in New Kingston.

Information from World Action Salt and Health, released under this year's awareness theme 'Salt & Men's Health', warns against too much salt intake in men:

"Watch out for salt; eat less than six grams per day. Too much salt raises blood pressure, leading to heart disease and stroke, the biggest killers of men."