@article{3559dcf7f94a4fa0954eb3ed56b2d59a,
title = "A one-quarter reduction in the salt content of bread can be made without detection",
abstract = "Objective: To determine if it is possible to deliver a one-quarter reduction in the sodium content of bread without detection. Design: Single-blind, randomized, controlled trial. Setting: The Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney, Australia. Participants: One-hundred and ten volunteers from the hospital staff that completed 94% of scheduled assessments. Intervention: Six consecutive weeks of bread with usual sodium content or six consecutive weeks of bread with cumulating 5% reductions in sodium content each week. Main outcome measure: The proportion of participants reporting a difference in the salt content of the study bread from week to week. Results: The intervention group were no more likely than the control group to report a difference in the salt content of the bread from week to week (P = 0.8). Similarly, there were no differences between randomized groups in the scores for flavour (P = 0.08) or liking of the bread (P = 0.95) over the study follow-up period. However, the saltiness scores recorded on a visual analogue scale did decline in the intervention group compared with the control group (P = 0.01) Conclusions: A one-quarter reduction in the sodium content of white bread can be delivered over a short time period, while maintaining consumer acceptance. Over the long term, and particularly if achieved for multiple foods, a decrease in sodium content of this magnitude would be expected to reduce population levels of blood pressure and the risks of stroke and heart attack.",
keywords = "Blood pressure, Bread, Heart attack, Randomized trial, Salt, Stroke",
author = "S. Girgis and B. Neal and J. Prescott and J. Prendergast and S. Dumbrell and C. Turner and M. Woodward",
note = "Funding Information: Objective: To determine if it is possible to deliver a one-quarter reduction in the sodium content of bread without detection. Design: Single-blind, randomized, controlled trial. Setting: The Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney, Australia. Participants: One-hundred and ten volunteers from the hospital staff that completed 94% of scheduled assessments. Intervention: Six consecutive weeks of bread with usual sodium content or six consecutive weeks of bread with cumulating 5% reductions in sodium content each week. Main outcome measure: The proportion of participants reporting a difference in the salt content of the study bread from week to week. Results: The intervention group were no more likely than the control group to report a difference in the salt content of the bread from week to week (P ¼ 0.8). Similarly, there were no differences between randomized groups in the scores for flavour (P ¼ 0.08) or liking of the bread (P ¼ 0.95) over the study follow-up period. However, the saltiness scores recorded on a visual analogue scale did decline in the intervention group compared with the control group (P ¼ 0.01) Conclusions: A one-quarter reduction in the sodium content of white bread can be delivered over a short time period, while maintaining consumer acceptance. Over the long term, and particularly if achieved for multiple foods, a decrease in sodium content of this magnitude would be expected to reduce population levels of blood pressure and the risks of stroke and heart attack. Sponsorship: A research grant was obtained from the Northern Sydney Area Health Service and the study bread was provided by George Weston Foods (Tip-Top). European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2003) 57, 616 – 620. doi:10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601583",
year = "2003",
month = apr,
day = "1",
doi = "10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601583",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "57",
pages = "616--620",
journal = "European Journal of Clinical Nutrition",
issn = "0954-3007",
publisher = "Nature Publishing Group",
number = "4",
}