How much salt (sodium) should I have in my diet?
It is recommended that Australian adults should aim to consume no more than one teaspoon (5 grams) of salt a day (or 2,000 mg of sodium a day) in order to prevent chronic disease such as heart disease, stroke and stomach cancer.
Reduce intake of high salt foods such as:
- Processed meats (e.g. ham, bacon, sausages). One serve (50g) of bacon contains around 790mg of sodium (1.98g of salt)
- Snack foods (e.g. biscuits, potato crisps, muffins). One fruit muffin (85g) has around 0.75g of salt.
- Takeaway foods (e.g. pies, sausage rolls, pizza). One serve of pizza (300g) contains around 1497mg of sodium (3.74g of salt)
- Canned foods (e.g. soups) One serve of soup (200g) contains around 560mg of sodium (1.4g of salt)
- Savoury cooking sauces (e.g. pasta and stir-fry sauces) and condiments (e.g. tomato sauce, mayonnaise). One serve (90g) of pasta sauce contains around 300mg of sodium (0.75g of salt)
Breads and fat spreads, breakfast cereals and cheese can also be high in sodium but provide many other important nutrients.