CDC: Americans eat too much salt

ATLANTA, March 26 (UPI) -- U.S. residents should eat less salt, federal health officials said Thursday, and a lower sodium recommendation applies to almost 70 percent of adults.

A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that most Americans consume more than double the amount of their daily recommended level of sodium.

The CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a survey designed to assess the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States.

During 2005-2006, the estimated average intake of sodium for people in the United States age 2 and older was 3,436 mg per day. The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that adults in general should consume less than 2,300 mg -- approximately one teaspoon of salt -- per day.

However, the study showed that 69.2 percent of U.S. adults -- people with high blood pressure, blacks, or anyone age 40 and older -- should aim to consume no more than 1,500 mg of sodium per day.

"People need to know their recommended daily sodium limit and take action to reduce sodium intake," Dr. Darwin R. Labarthe of the CDC's division for heart disease and stroke prevention said in a statement. "Most of the sodium we eat comes from packaged, processed and restaurant foods."