Kellogg's Without Salt

There is a lot of consumer information available now that details all the health changes that we need to make in order to be healthier. Many bodies are trying to help us in a variety of ways: to lose weight, take more exercise, stop smoking and improve our diets. Health insurance companies, who of course have always dealt with ill health, are now providing lots of information on health prevention.

Some believe that as a society we need legislation to help these incentives along. This week Kellogg's is set to cut the salt from its cereals by a third after pressure from health watchdogs.

Hi salt intake is linked to higher incidences of strokes, high blood pressure and heart attacks. It is thought that the average person has 46% more salt daily than they should. They consume 8.6g instead of 6g.

Pressure from the Government's Food Standards Agency (FSA) and other groups has left Kellogg's no choice but to cave in. They are reducing the salt content of Rice Krispies and Cornflakes by up to a third. This will be followed by salt reductions in runchy Nut, Frosties, Coco Pops and Rice Krispies Squares.

Head of nutrition at Kellogg, Alyson Greenhalgh-Ball, said:

'For the past 12 years we've been listening to our shoppers and taken down the amount of salt in our food.

'We've been doing this slowly. We take people's palates with us and so they don't notice any difference in taste. Since 1998 we've taken over 45% of salt out of our cereals.'

She added:

'In spite of breakfast cereals only accounting for 2.8% of the salt purchased in the nation's shopping baskets, we hope this move shows people we are serious about reducing salt.'

All the leading health insurance companies focus on health prevention. Bupa and Pruhealth include articles on cutting back salt usage. Some of the tips include:

• Don't put salt on the table
• Don't add salt when cooking
• Cut back on smoked meat and fish
• Buy products that say 'no added salt'