Pizza Hut and KFC highest on list of serious salt offenders

A study by campaign group Consensus Action on Salt and Health (CASH) found "shockingly high" levels of salt in individual, family and children's meals.

The highest levels were found at Pizza Hut, where a share of a "Pizza Plus for 4" deal could mean a family consuming 12.3g of salt each.

This is twice the recommended daily salt intake for adults, which stands at 6g. It is almost two-and-a-half times the recommended limit for a seven to ten-year-old - which is 5g a day - and more than four times the limit for youngsters aged four to six, who are not supposed to consume more than 3g a day.

But it was not only Pizza Hut which had high salt levels.

A KFC variety meal, including chicken pieces and fries, had 6.3g of salt, while a Burger King Chicken BLT baguette meal deal contained 4.8g of salt. The McDonald's meal with the highest salt content was a Quarter Pounder with Cheese meal, with 3.2g of salt.

The overall meal with the lowest salt content was a McDonald's Chicken McNuggets meal, with salad instead of fries, with just 0.8g of salt per portion.

The CASH research included 21 menu items and 48 meal combinations which were aimed specifically at children.

These ranged from 4.3g of salt in a Pizza Hut children's meal to 0.6g in a McDonald's Happy Meal of chicken nuggets and fruit.

Carrie Bolt, a CASH researcher, said that a children's burger meal contained around 1.9g of salt, while some pizza deals went up to 2.3g of salt.

"We are concerned that Pizza Hut and KFC provide no information at point of sale to tell parents how much salt is in the food," she said. "There is no way for people to make informed choices before they buy.

"We are pleased that McDonald's have labelling on their packaging and that Burger King provides leaflets giving the amount of sodium per portion.

"It is true that all four surveyed had information on their websites, but we would like to see all fast-food outlets displaying nutritional information where people make their choices."

Professor Graham MacGregor, chairman of CASH, said that the salt levels in some of the meals surveyed was "staggeringly high".

"Salt acts as a long-term toxin that puts up blood pressure in both children and adults and thereby causes strokes and heart attacks," he said.

"We know that reducing salt intakes to below the recommended 6g a day for adults and less for children reduces the risk of having a stroke by a quarter, and heart attack by one fifth, so I would really urge people to choose lower salt options whenever they go out for a meal."

Alex Callaghan, policy officer at the British Heart Foundation, added: "Parents need to know that by taking their family to a fast-food restaurant for an innocent treat, they could actually be giving them food loaded with hidden nasties.

"But sadly, at the moment, there is little guidance on what restaurant food contains. Fast-food restaurants must start taking some responsibility and act now by reducing salt levels and providing nutritional information at point of sale.

"Merely giving it online is a cop-out and will not help people make meaningful choices while they're standing in the queue."

A spokesman for KFC and Pizza Hut said: "As usual, these salt extremists have chosen the most indulgent of our products to portray us in the worst possible light.

"Every sensible parent knows that Pizza Hut and KFC are an enjoyable treat and we have reduced the salt levels in our products over the past few years."

A Burger King spokesman said: "We are pleased that Burger King has come out favourably in this report as we care about what goes into our menu choices."

A spokesman for McDonald's said: "We have worked very hard over recent years to make significant reductions in salt levels to many of our menu items and the most recent CASH report reflects these changes."

BLAME FOR CATALOGUE OF HEALTH PROBLEMS

CONSUMERS face a daily battle to avoid hidden salt in their food.

While cakes, breakfast cereals and bread can all contain salt, people may not normally associate these foods with having high levels of it.

But experts have set recommended levels in an effort to reduce salt intake and avoid health problems such as high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes.

In May 2003, the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition report set recommended maximum limits for salt intake - 6g a day for adults and lower for children.

The campaign group Consensus Action on Salt and Health say there is strong evidence that links the nation's high salt intakes to high blood pressure.

High blood pressure is the main cause of strokes and a major cause of heart attacks - two of the most common causes of death and illness in the world.

It is also thought a high-salt diet is linked to other illnesses including osteoporosis, cancer of the stomach, obesity and making the symptoms of asthma worse. Earlier this year research revealed children as young as four are increasing their risk of heart disease and stroke in later life because they are eating too much salt.

The study analysed the diets of 1,658 youngsters aged four to 18, finding that those with a high-salt intake had higher blood pressure.

In recent years the Food Standards Agency has led work with the food industry to reduce salt levels in many of their products, and also improve labelling to outline salt content.