High salt content in popular soups--study

There is an immense amount of evidence that a salt-laden diet not only raises high blood pressure but also elevates the risk for stroke, heart failure, osteoporosis, kidney stones, and even stomach cancer.

Professor Graham MacGregor, the chairman of CASH stated, "It is the very high levels of salt that are put in our food that leads to thousands of unnecessary stroke and heart deaths. Furthermore, there is increasing evidence that salt intake is linked to stomach cancer, osteoporosis, obesity and kidney stones and kidney disease."

575 ready-to-eat soups analyzed
As a part of the survey, CASH assessed the level of salt concentration in 575 ready-to-eat ranges of soups from renowned brands Batchelors and Heinz.

The results showed that 99 percent of the supposedly healthy light meals contained salt above the recommended level of 6.0g daily.

Katharine Jenner, a CASH nutritionist, said “People tend to think salt is only in crisps, snacks and ready meals. But this survey shows huge amounts of salt can be hidden in seemingly healthy choices such as soup.”

Some products with high concentrates of salt
Nearly 10 products from EAT, a national chain of 98 sandwich shops, contained “astoundingly high” amounts of salt per portion, more than a packet of crisps.

The chain’s largest Bold Thai Green Chicken Curry contained 8.07g of salt, equivalent to around three Big Macs with fries.

In addition, Caffe Nero’s standard-size organic carrot and coriander soup contained 3.6g of salt in every portion while the lowest takeaway soup, a Malaysian chicken soup from Pret A Manger, contained 1.0g per portion.

Among super market brand, the New Covent Garden Scotch Broth, contained the highest level of sodium at 2.4g per 300g, which measured to the salt contents of nearly five packets of crisps.

Although a cut of 17 percent in salt concentrates was perceived in some items since CASH carried out an identical survey three years ago, a quarter still fell below the target of 0.6g per 100g set by the Food Standard Agency 2010.

Hannah Brinsden, who carried out the research said, “In general, the cafe-style takeaway soups tend to be saltiest, whereas the fresh soups tend to be lower in salt.

“If you are concerned about how much salt you eat try to avoid soups containing high-salt ingredients such as bacon and chorizo. However, the best option would be to make your own at home.”