Cash: Low salt consumption is vital

It is vital that children eat no more than the recommended level of salt to maintain their health, Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash) has said.

The campaign group is concerned that some foods contain more than half the daily maximum limit of salt for a six-year-old in a single serving.

While adults are recommended to eat no more than 6g of salt a day, guidelines say children aged four to six should have under 3g a day.

Those aged between one and three should have no more than 2g.

Cash chairman Professor Graham MacGregor, professor of cardiovascular medicine at St George's hospital in London, advised that keeping children's salt consumption below the recommended maximum limit is "vital".

He drew attention to research linking higher-salt diets in childhood to high blood pressure, which can lead to heart disease.

"With everything we know about the dangers of eating too much salt, parents need as much information as possible about how much salt is contained in the foods they give to their children, and food manufacturers need to do as much as they can to reduce the amount of salt they add to foods that are eaten by children," Professor MacGregor said.

"We know that a lot of work has been done by some companies to reduce salt in products eaten by children. We want to see all manufacturers doing everything they can to reduce the salt they put in children's food."