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29/04/2010
Curry: 'Saltier Than Sea Water'
One of the nation's favourite foods, curry, in some cases can be saltier than Atlantic sea water, a study has revealed.
Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash) found that the nation was overdosing on salt every day, creating a risk of raised blood pressure, strokes and thousands of early deaths each year.
Cash surveyed 784 products in the largest survey of its kind in the UK, across supermarket shelves, independent shops and takeaway restaurants.
The survey showed very high levels of salt hidden in bought Indian & South Asian cuisine including; takeaways, ready meals, cooking sauces, chutneys, pickles and side dishes.
Curry dishes frequently top the poll as the UK's favourite meals, but these findings highlight that the nation is blindly consuming dangerous levels of salt.
As well as main curry dishes being high in salt; you can more than double your salt intake with extras such as chutney and Naan bread.
According to the organisation the lack of clear labelling on the packaging, combined with the spicy ingredients masking the salty flavour, it is very hard for people to know how much salt they are eating.
Within Iceland’s new Balti range, currently advertised on television, the frozen Chicken Tikka Balti contains a massive 7.2g salt per 450g pack. This is over the daily recommended amount without even including any side dishes.
Cash said six ready meals from the Iceland Balti range were saltier than Atlantic seawater, weight for weight.
Similarly More than half of the pickles and chutneys tested were also saltier seawater.
A 30g spoonful of Priya's Lime Pickle had more than seven times the salt concentration of the sea.
However, salt levels in ready meals varied significantly, with the Sainsbury's Be Good To Yourself Chicken Korma with Pilau Rice containing just 0.91g. That was almost five times less than a Lidl frozen Kan Pur Garden Chicken Korma with Pilau Rice, at 4.5g.
Cash found the salt content of takeaway curries bought in Brick Lane - London's 'curry street' - ranged from 1.37g in a vegetable korma to 6.81g in a chicken tikka masala.
Salt in cooking sauces ranged from 0.5g in a Co-operative Healthy Living Rogan Josh Cook In Sauce and Weightwatchers Korma, to 2.49g in a Waitrose Half Fat Jalfrezi Cooking Sauce.
Cash chairman Professor Graham MacGregor, from the Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, said: 'It is the very high levels of unnecessary salt that are added to our food that puts up our blood pressure and leads to thousands of people needlessly dying of strokes, heart attacks and heart failures every year.
"The shockingly high levels of salt in many of these products mean that many people in the UK are consuming huge amounts of salt when they enjoy a curry.
"We urge all these manufacturers and providers to reduce their salt content immediately."
Cash nutritionist Katharine Jenner said: "A regular curry night is becoming a British institution, making these high salt levels extremely worrying."
(LB/BMcc)
Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash) found that the nation was overdosing on salt every day, creating a risk of raised blood pressure, strokes and thousands of early deaths each year.
Cash surveyed 784 products in the largest survey of its kind in the UK, across supermarket shelves, independent shops and takeaway restaurants.
The survey showed very high levels of salt hidden in bought Indian & South Asian cuisine including; takeaways, ready meals, cooking sauces, chutneys, pickles and side dishes.
Curry dishes frequently top the poll as the UK's favourite meals, but these findings highlight that the nation is blindly consuming dangerous levels of salt.
As well as main curry dishes being high in salt; you can more than double your salt intake with extras such as chutney and Naan bread.
According to the organisation the lack of clear labelling on the packaging, combined with the spicy ingredients masking the salty flavour, it is very hard for people to know how much salt they are eating.
Within Iceland’s new Balti range, currently advertised on television, the frozen Chicken Tikka Balti contains a massive 7.2g salt per 450g pack. This is over the daily recommended amount without even including any side dishes.
Cash said six ready meals from the Iceland Balti range were saltier than Atlantic seawater, weight for weight.
Similarly More than half of the pickles and chutneys tested were also saltier seawater.
A 30g spoonful of Priya's Lime Pickle had more than seven times the salt concentration of the sea.
However, salt levels in ready meals varied significantly, with the Sainsbury's Be Good To Yourself Chicken Korma with Pilau Rice containing just 0.91g. That was almost five times less than a Lidl frozen Kan Pur Garden Chicken Korma with Pilau Rice, at 4.5g.
Cash found the salt content of takeaway curries bought in Brick Lane - London's 'curry street' - ranged from 1.37g in a vegetable korma to 6.81g in a chicken tikka masala.
Salt in cooking sauces ranged from 0.5g in a Co-operative Healthy Living Rogan Josh Cook In Sauce and Weightwatchers Korma, to 2.49g in a Waitrose Half Fat Jalfrezi Cooking Sauce.
Cash chairman Professor Graham MacGregor, from the Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, said: 'It is the very high levels of unnecessary salt that are added to our food that puts up our blood pressure and leads to thousands of people needlessly dying of strokes, heart attacks and heart failures every year.
"The shockingly high levels of salt in many of these products mean that many people in the UK are consuming huge amounts of salt when they enjoy a curry.
"We urge all these manufacturers and providers to reduce their salt content immediately."
Cash nutritionist Katharine Jenner said: "A regular curry night is becoming a British institution, making these high salt levels extremely worrying."
(LB/BMcc)
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The Food Standards Agency has published voluntary salt reduction targets for food manufacturers and retailers, in order to encourage reduction in the amount of salt in many processed foods. The reduction targets apply to salt levels in the 85 food categories that contribute the most amount of salt in our diets.
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