Fact Sheet – Implement Policies That Promote Sodium Reduction

Why is this important?

Extra sodium makes your body retain fluid. When your fluid balance is off, your heart works extremely hard to get blood out to your body. This wears out your heart muscle and it causes your blood pressure to escalate.

There is strong evidence between excessive salt consumption and several chronic diseases.

  • Worldwide, high blood pressure is the leading risk factor for death and the second leading risk for disability by causing heart disease, stroke and kidney failure.[1]
  • Excess levels of sodium can also put you at risk for osteoporosis, stomach cancer, kidney stones, enlarged heart muscle and headaches.[2]

An estimated 17.3 million people die from cardiovascular disease (such as heart attacks and strokes) in 2008, representing 30% of all deaths worldwide.[3]

High blood pressure is the leading risk factor for death in women in the U.S., which is about 200,000 female deaths each year. This is five times more than the annual deaths from breast cancer.4

How much sodium do you need?

The average American over the age of 2 gets about 3,400 milligrams (mg) of sodium a day[4] — much more than the recommended 2,300 mg a day.[5] Most people eat too much sodium often without knowing it. Some foods naturally contain sodium, but most of the salt is added to many processed foods than is necessary.

Serving size / Sodium (milligrams)
1 teaspoon of salt / 2,400 mg
instant ramen noodles with flavoring / 500-1500 mg
2 oz Spam (1/6 can of Spam) / 790 mg
1 cup of corned beef hash / 1,230 mg
1 tablespoon of soy sauce / 1,000 mg
3 links of vienna sausage / 410 mg
½ cup of canned corn / 360 mg
¼ of a frozen pepperoni pizza / 480-860 mg
1 oz bag of regular potato chips (13-16 chips) / 120-215 mg
1 oz serving of dry roasted, salted peanuts (28-30 peanuts) / 230 mg
1 fast food restaurant cheeseburger / 710-1690 mg
¼ cup of tomato sauce / 340 mg

Why is it important to have policies to reduce sodium intake?

High blood pressure is known as the silent killer since usually it does not have warning signs or symptoms.

About 80% of heart diseases, stroke and type-2 diabetes and 40% of cancer can be prevented through inexpensive and cost-effective interventions. [6],[7]

Children who have high sodium diets are twice as likely to develop high blood pressure compared to those who have low-sodium diets.4

77 percent of a person’s salt intake comes from restaurant or processed food.[8]

Implement policies that reduce sodium consumption – A Guamanian example

Target Population: All Government of Guam employees

Summary: PL31-141: Healthy Vending Machine Policy

Guam was awarded with the Communities Putting Prevention to Work Grant to have healthy foods more accessible to the community.

PL31-141: mandates all vending machines in government of Guam facilities to be serving at least 50% healthier food options.

The Guam Department of Public Health and Social Services (DPHSS) worked with all government agencies, and vending machine operators before the Healthy Vending Machine Policy could be passed.

DPHSS took the law a step further by enforcing 100% of all vending machines in all DPHSS facilities to be selling healthy foods and water content only.

Guam’s Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) Consortium is looking towards having the Worksite Wellness Health Coaches in each of the participating government agencies to be the enforcing agency, to ensure vending machine vendors are in compliance to the standards set forth by Healthy Vending Machine Policy.

Who can I contact for more information?

Adrian Bauman

Boden Institute of Obesity, Nutrition and Exercise and Prevention Research Collaboration

University of Sydney

Sydney, Australia

Email: 

Executive Fact SheetPage 1

[1]World Health Organization (2009). Global health risks: mortality and burden of disease attributable to selected major risks. Geneva, Switzerland: WHO Press:

[2]American Heart Association (2013, August 23). The effects of excess sodium on your health and appearance. Retrieved from

[3] World Health Organization (2013). Reducing sodium intake to reduce blood pressure and risk of cardiovascular diseases in adults. Retrieved from

[4]Institute of Medicine (2005). Dietary reference intakes for water, potassium, sodium chloride, and sulfate. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.

[5] Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (2013, December 12). Salt. Retrieved from

[6] World Health Organization (2002). Diet, nutrition, and the prevention of chronic diseases: WHO Technical Report Series 916. Geneva: World Health Organization.

[7] World Cancer Research Fund and American Institute for Cancer Research (1997). Food, nutrition and the prevention of cancer: a global perspective. Washington, DC: American Institute for Cancer Research: 530–34.

[8] Mattes RD & Donnelly D (1991). Relative contributions of dietary sodium sources. J Am Coll Nutr;10:383–93.