Cardiovascular diseases kill 10,000 people per day in Europe and more than one in three adults aged 30 to 79 suffer from high blood pressure. The cause: excessive salt consumption. This is the alert launched on Wednesday May 15 by the World Health Organization.
Too much salt consumed every day
“A staggering four million deaths are caused by cardiovascular diseases each year – mainly in men, particularly in the eastern part of our WHO region. These are the facts, but it’s something we can change,” reacted Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Director for Europe, in a press release.
What he offers: “the implementation of targeted policies, aimed at reducing salt consumption by 25% and (which could) save around 900,000 lives by 2030”.
Of the 53 countries in the Europe zone, which extends to Central Asia, 51 of them have an average daily salt intake higher than the maximum 5g per day recommended by the WHO.
As a reminder, salt is one of the main risk factors for high blood pressure, which itself causes cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks and strokes.
The WHO targets in particular the street food and processed foods as the main suppliers of salt in the countries concerned.
Call for binding policies
The WHO is calling on leaders of countries in the region to put in place firm measures to reduce salt and better control hypertension in Europe. The organization recommends the implementation of:
- Mandatory limits on the amount of salt in commonly consumed foods
- Mandatory labeling on packaging to help consumers in their choice
- Awareness campaigns on the risks associated with salt consumption.
Concerning hypertension, the WHO recommends diagnosis and management according to standardized protocols available in primary care centers. She also calls for better information for patients on the risks associated with hypertension and the importance of following treatment.
Men, more at risk than women
In the European region, cardiovascular diseases represent 42.5% of causes of death each year. Men are on the front line, having 2.5 times the risk of dying from cardiovascular diseases than women.
“There is also a geographic divide: the probability of dying young (30 to 69 years) from cardiovascular disease is almost five times higher in Eastern Europe and Central Asia than in Western Europe,” further specifies the press release.
