Intake of household salt in a Danish population

Objective: To quantify the intake of household salt and its contribution to the total salt intake in a Danish population. Methods: Eighty-seven healthy individuals (37 men and 50 women), aged 20-55 years, recruited from the area of Copenhagen, completed the study. Total salt intake was estimated from the mean urinary excretion of sodium in four 24-h collections. Household salt, added to the food by the volunteers, was assessed using a lithium-marker technique. Results: Total salt intake was 10.6 +/- 3.3 g day(-1) (mean +/- s.d.) in men and 7.1 +/- 2.3 g day(-1) in women. Median intake of household salt was 1.0 g day(-1) in men and 0.5 g day(-1) in women, corresponding to 10.2 and 8.7% of total salt intake in men and women, respectively. A significant difference between sexes was found regarding total salt intake (P