§ Mr. Martin BellTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what studies his Department has assessed which indicate health outcome benefits from a reduction in the dietary sodium intake of the general population; [72325]
(2) if he will request the COMA Panel to review the recommendations on sodium consumption set out in its 1994 report on Nutritional Aspects of Cardiovascular Disease. [72320]
§ Ms JowellThe Government's source of independent expert advice on food and nutrition policy is the Committee of Medical Aspects of Food and Nutrition Policy (COMA). It considered the dietary requirements for sodium amongst the general population in its 1991 report on Dietary Reference Values, and the relationship between sodium and blood pressure in its 1994 report on the Nutritional Aspects of Cardiovascular Disease. Both of these reports are available in the Library and contain full references of the studies considered. We have no plans to ask COMA to review its recommendations.
However, at the Department's request, the Faculty of Public Health Medicine (a faculty of the Royal College of Physicians) and the British Heart Foundation convened a seminar to review the evidence on the relationship between dietary sodium and blood pressure. This confirmed that there is a large body of authoritative opinion which favours a general reduction in salt consumption, and we have, therefore, asked officials to explore with the food industry the scope for reducing the levels of salt in processed foods.