New York City begins a new era in nutritional warnings this week as chain restaurants start putting a special symbol on highly salty dishes.
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One chain, Panera Bread, said it cut the amount of salt in three of its menu items in NY, to avoid having to warn customers about the sodium content. That included the Bacon Turkey Bravo sandwich, which the Center for Science in the Public Interest had listed in September among the fast-food menu items with more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium. It does not limit how much sodium can be contented in food and it won’t penalize restaurants that serve food with more than the recommended daily amount.
Eating high levels of sodium can “increase blood pressure, which is a major risk factor for heart disease, the leading cause of death in the United States, and stroke”, according to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in New York City, claiming almost 17,000 lives in 2013. “Luckily, Chirlane is very, very adamant about reducing the use of salt, so my hand has been slapped many times”. NY has given restaurants a grace period to comply, with fines not collected until March 1.
Those items will have an image of a salt shaker next to them.
According to Mary Bassett, New York’s heath commissioner, this measure can help the public be aware of the salt content of the food they usually order.
At Chipotle, a burrito with chicken, white rice, black beans, fresh tomato salsa, cheese and guacamole runs 2,380 mg. “But maybe, just maybe, they’ll start to watch how much they eat, maybe they will get off the subway a stop earlier and walk, instead of taking the elevator, they will walk two flights, there will be some weight loss”.
A McDonald’s hamburger has 490 mg of sodium, but upgrade to a double quarter pounder with cheese and that’s 1,310 mg. So, New York City’s Mayor, Bill de Blasio, has taken action. Now, the FDA requires restaurants nationwide with 20 or more locations to display calorie counts on their menus.
For health advocates, watching one’s sodium intake is hopefully a good step to change people’s behavior for the better.
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The rule is “the tipping point for the hardworking men and women that own and operate New York’s restaurants”, the organization said in a statement.
