Even a small reduction in salt in the diet can be a big help to the heart. A new study used a computer model to predict how just t
hree grams less a day would af
fect heart disease in the United States.
The result: thirteen percent fewer heart attacks. Eight percent fewer strokes. Four percent fewer deaths. Eleven percent fewer new cases of heart disease. And two hundred forty billion dollars in health care savings.
Researchers found it could prevent one hundred thousand heart attacks and ninety-two thousand deaths every year.
The study is in the New England Journal of Medicine. Kirsten, at the University of California, was the lead author. She says people would not even notice a difference in taste with three grams, or one-half teaspoon, less salt per day. The team also included researchers at Stanford and Columbia University.
Each gram of salt contains four hundred milligrams of sodium, which is how foods may list their salt content.
The government says the average American man eats ten grams of salt a day. The American Heart Association advises no more than three grams for healthy people. It says salt in the American diet has increased fifty percent since the nineteen seventies, while blood pressures have also risen. Less salt can mean a lower blood pressure.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is leading an effort called the National Salt Reduction Initiative. The idea is to put pressure on food companies and restaurants.
Mayor Bloomberg has already succeeded in other areas, like requiring fast food places in the city to list calorie information. Now a study by the Seattle Children's Research Institute shows how that idea can influence what parents order for their children.
Ninety-nine parents of three to six year olds took part. Half had McDonald's menus clearly showing how many calories were in each food. The other half got menus without the calorie information.
小题1: How many heart attacks will occur in the US every year？
A．nearly 800,000.
B．24,000.
C．100,000.
D．92,000.小题2:We can learn from the passage that .
A．Americans ate no more than 5 grams of salt per day in the 1970s
B．the American Heart Association suggest less than 3 grams of salt every day
C．a reduction in salt in the diet helps lower blood pressure
D．all the heart diseases result from eating more salt小题3:The National Salt Reduction Initiative aims to .
A．advise Americans to eat less salt
B．put pressure on food companies and restaurants
C．require fast food places to list calorie information
D．attract the public attention to the problem小题4:All the following are related to the salt in diet except .
A．strokes
B．heart attacks
C．blood pressures
D．stomach diseases小题5:The best title of the passage of the passage is .
A．Less salt can mean more life
B．Prevent heart attacks and deaths
C．The National Salt Reduction Initiative
D．Americans should eat less salt
