Children and Teens Alerted to Watch Sodium Intake

As a nutritionist, you’ve undoubtedly been asked by concerned parents about sodium and high blood pressure in their kids and teens. Much has been said about the subject for older adults. Now the latest CDC research suggests that children and teens should watch their sodium intake as well. In fact, according to CDC findings, higher salt intake in children and teens resulted in a greater risk of developing high blood pressure, especially for those who are overweight or obese. On average, children and teens consumed as much sodium as adults. 
 

CDC nutritional epidemiologist Elena V. Kuklina, MD, who co-authored the study, noted that high blood pressure is increasingly common among US children, with high sodium being a major contributor. On average, children and teens take in about  3,400 mg of salt (slightly less than 2 teaspoons). That's more than twice the daily maximum of 1,500 mg recommended by the American Heart Association for children and adults. "We clearly need to reduce sodium intake at the population level," says Kuklina. "We can do this by eating more fruits and vegetables and less processed foods."
 

The CDC study included 6,235 children and teens. More than a third (37%) were overweight or obese, while 15% had either high or above-normal blood pressure. For kids and teens who were overweight or obese, each additional 1,000-mg in sodium per day nearly doubled their risk for high- or above-normal blood pressure. Overweight and obese kids and teens who consumed the most sodium were 3.5 times as likely to have high blood pressure. Children and teens who have high blood pressure are more prone to have it as adults. And many studies have shown that having high blood pressure can increase the risk for heart disease and stroke.
 

Pediatric cardiologist Stephen R. Daniels, MD, PhD of the University of Colorado School of Medicine is seeing more kids with high blood pressure. "When you eat more calories, as kids who are overweight tend to do, you are almost certainly eating more salt," says Daniels. "This study tells us that sodium intake may be a bigger issue for kids who are overweight."
 

Kids and teens get most of this salt from processed foods, fast-food meals, and school lunches. One CDC study revealed that the typical school lunch contains 1,442 mg of sodium. "Foods that you would never think of, such as breads and many breakfast cereals, are very high in salt," says Daniels. "If the food industry would get on board and gradually reduce the salt in their products, that could have a huge impact."
 

Are your child and teen patients consuming too much salt? Are you doing everything you can to advise them of the foods that are packed with salt—like breads, soups, cereals, chili and frozen dinners?
 

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