Nutrition Labelling and Prevention of High Blood Pressure

2 High Blood Pressure According to a local survey conducted in 2003/2004, about 1 in 3 men and 1 in 4 women in Hong Kong have high blood pressure. People with high blood pressure may not know at its early stage of development and yet untreated high blood pressure can lead to heart attack, stroke, kidney failure, etc. 1 in 3 men have high blood pressure - 1 in 4 women have high blood pressure -

3 Dietary Modifications for High Blood Pressure Prevention Lower the intake of sodium can reduce the risk of developing high blood pressure. Lower the intake of saturated fat and trans fat can reduce the risk of developing heart diseases. Choose foods with lower energy, fat and sugars contents for those who are overweight.

4 Preventing High Blood Pressure and Nutrition Labelling Using nutrition label can help us to find out the sodium content of food products.

Read and Use Nutrition Labels

6 Examples of Recommended Format of Nutrition Label Tabular format 1 7

7 Examples of Recommended Format of Nutrition Label Linear format (for small packages with total surface area of less than 200 cm 2 )

8 Required Nutrients on Nutrition Labels 1+7 (energy plus seven nutrients specified for labelling) – i.e. energy, protein, total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, carbohydrates, sugars and sodium. Nutrient(s) involved in nutrition claim(s) (when the nutrition claim is on any type of fat, the amount of cholesterol must be declared as well). For other nutrients, declaration is voluntary

9 Making Use of Nutrition Label Consumers can: Compare the nutritional content among different foods for a healthier choice, e.g. choose food that is lower in fat, sodium (or salt) and sugars Understand the nutritional content of food and estimate their contribution to the overall diet To meet individual’s dietary needs

Three Simple Steps to Read Nutrition Label

11 Three Simple Steps to Read Nutrition Label Step 1 Take note of the reference amount of food being used in the nutrition label Step 2 Read the energy and nutrient content together with the reference amount Step 3 Refer to the percentage Nutrient Reference Value (%NRV), if available, to see if the food contains a lot or a little of energy or a nutrient in the food

12 Step 1: Take note of the reference amount of food being used in the nutrition label Expressed as per 100 g (or per 100 mL) of food

13 Step 1: Take note of the reference amount of food being used in the nutrition label Expressed as per serving (the serving size (in g or mL) and the no. of servings must be specified on the package)

14 Step 1: Take note of the reference amount of food being used in the nutrition label Expressed as per package (if the package contains only a single serving )

15 Step 2: Read the energy and nutrient content together with the reference amount A)Use nutrition label to compare between products B)Use nutrition label to calculate the amount of energy and nutrients you get from food

16 Step 2A: Use nutrition label to compare between products Products with nutritional content expresssed in the SAME reference amount If reference amount is the SAME, you CAN COMPARE between the products DIRECTLY (Partial) Nutrition label of Brand A biscuit(Partial) Nutrition label of Brand C biscuit

17 Step 2A: Use nutrition label to compare between products Products with nutritional content expresssed in DIFFERENT reference amounts If reference amounts are DIFFERENT, you CANNOT COMPARE between the products DIRECTLY (Partial) Nutrition label of Brand A biscuit(Partial) Nutrition label of Brand D biscuit

18 Step 2A: Use nutrition label to compare between products Products with nutritional content expresssed in DIFFERENT reference amounts

19 Step 2B: Use nutrition label to calculate the amount of energy and nutrients you get from food The more you eat, the more you get  If you eat 1 serving of biscuit Get 8 g of fat, 3.5 g of saturated fat  If you eat 2 servings of biscuit Get 16 g of fat, 7 g of saturated fat

20 Step 2B: Use nutrition label to calculate the amount of energy and nutrients you get from food Energy and nutrient content expressed as per 100 g/mL

21 Step 3: Refer to the percentage Nutrient Reference Value (%NRV), if available, to see if the food contains a lot or a little of energy or a nutrient in the food %NRV is usually on a scale from 0% to 100%.

22 For nutrients that needed to limit their intake  E.g. total fat, saturated fat, sodium and sugars  Look for foods that have lower %NRV Get enough of nutrients that are good for health  E.g. dietary fibre  Look for foods that have higher %NRV Step 3: Refer to the percentage Nutrient Reference Value (%NRV), if available, to see if the food contains a lot or a little of energy or a nutrient in the food

Use Nutrition Label to Choose Healthy Food

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25 Principles of Healthy Eating Choose a variety of food and eat cereals as the largest portion of food in every meal. Eat a lot of vegetables and fruit. Reduce the consumption of foodstuffs with high salt, fat and sugar content as well as those which are preserved. A daily fluid intake of 6 to 8 glasses (including clear soup, fruit juice and tea). Take meals regularly and in adequate amounts. (Source of information: Department of Health)

26 Nutrition Labelling is a Useful Tool for Practising Healthy Eating Nutrition label and nutrition claim can help consumers choose healthier food in accordance with healthy eating principles and the Food Pyramid, e.g.  Choose biscuits lower in fat and sodium (or salt)  Choose dairy products lower in fat  Choose beverages lower in sugars

How to Choose Prepackaged Food to Prevent High Blood Pressure?

28 Preventing High Blood Pressure – Choosing Prepackaged Foods 1.Take note of relevant nutrition claim as a quick screening tool; and 2.Take three simple steps to read nutrition label

29 Preventing High Blood Pressure – Choosing Prepackaged Foods Choose foods with lower sodium and combined amount of saturated fat, trans fat. For those who require weight maintenance, choose foods with lower energy, fat and sugars contents Nutrition claim only gives a rough idea about the content of a particular nutrient, one should not make a food choice solely on the basis of a nutrition claim. In order to eat healthily, we should take note of other nutrients as well. For example, when buying a product with a “low sodium” claim, one should take note of the content of fat and other nutrients.

30 Preventing High Blood Pressure – Choosing Prepackaged Foods Claim ： Free; No; Zero; Without; Does not contain Claim ： Very low; Extremely low; Super low (This category of claim applies to sodium only) Claim ： Low; Little; Low source; Few; Contains a small amount of Meaning of Claim : Insignificant amount of a particular nutrient found in the food Meaning of Claim : A very small amount of sodium found in the food Meaning of Claim : A small amount of nutrient found in the food Example: Sodium free (Contain not more than 5mg of sodium per 100g/mL of food) Example: Very low sodium free (Contain not more than 40mg of sodium per 100g/mL of food) Example: Low sodium free (Contain not more than 120mg of sodium per 100g/mL of food) Nutrient content claims on sodium are classified into “Free”, “Very low” and “Low” claims Specific Conditions of Nutrient Content Claims -

31 Preventing High Blood Pressure – Choosing Prepackaged Foods Three Simple Steps to Read Nutrition Label Step 1 Take note of the reference amount of food being used in the nutrition label Step 2 Read and compare the nutritional content Step 3 Refer to the percentage Nutrient Reference Value (%NRV) (If available)

32 Preventing High Blood Pressure – Choosing Prepackaged Foods (Example 1)

33 Preventing High Blood Pressure – Choosing Prepackaged Foods (Example 2) Corn Flakes C Corn Flakes D

34 Preventing High Blood Pressure – Choosing Prepackaged Foods (Example 3) Soup E Soup F

ENDS

36 Is Salt the Same as Sodium? Sodium chloride (NaCl) is the chemical name of salt Majority of sodium intake is from salt Salt or other sodium-containing food additives, e.g. sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite, are often added to canned food and processed food Sodium itself also presents naturally in milk and cheese

37 How Much Sodium Do We Need? The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends - The daily intake amount of sodium should not be more than 2 000mg i.e. approximates to 1 level teaspoon of salt