Salt plays an important role in our daily diet. 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 three grams less a day would affect 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 Bibbins-Domingo at the University of California San Francisco 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 sodiu(钠), 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. Critics call it government interference.

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 that the calorie information on the menu can influence what parents order for their children. Ninety-nine parents of three to six year olds took part. Half had calories between the two groups for foods that the parents would have chosen for themselves. McDonald's menus clearly showing how many calories were in each food. Parents given the counts chose an average of one hundred two fewer calories when asked what they would order for their children. Yet there was no difference in calories between the two groups for foods that the parents would have chosen for themselves.

Study leader Pooja Tandon says even small calorie reductions on a regular basis can prevent weight gain over time.The study was published in the journal Pediatrics．

小题1:Which of the following benefits does less salt diet in the passage NOT cover?

A．The decrease of strokes

B．The prevention of weight gain

C．Fewer heart attacks

D．The drop in medical care cost小题2:It can be inferred from the passage that _______.

A．Americans ate no more than 5 grams of salt per day in the 1970s

B．the American Heart Association suggests less than 3 grams of salt a day for everyone

C．the less salt one eats, the healthier he will be

D．all the heart diseases result from eating too much salt小题3:The National Salt Reduction Initiative aims to_______.

A．inform people of the harm that salt does to health

B．attract the public attention to the problem

C．require fast food places to list salt information

D．put pressure on food companies and restaurants小题4:The underlined sentence "Yet there was no difference in calories between the two groups for foods that the parents would have chosen for themselves." implies that _______.

A．Parents pay less attention to the amount of calories in their diet.

B．Parents set a good example to their children in daily diet.

C．Parents take less salt than before while taking meals.

D．Most parents are on a diet for their health.小题5:Which of the following might be the best title for this passage?

A．Relationship between Salt and Health

B．Less Salt Can Mean Being More Healthy

C．A Survey on People's Regular Diet

D．Mayor Michael Bloomberg and His Health Project