Aims:
  • The 'Act on Salt Partnership' aims to develop innovative solutions to reducing salt intakes in communities
Summary:

Salt intake in remote Indigenous communities is far above recommendations. Considering that heart disease is the leading cause of death and illness in Indigenous Australia peoples, responsible for approximately 30% of the ten year life-expectancy gap, and that previous research has shown that even small reductions in salt intake could significantly reduce death from heart disease, successful strategies to reduce salt intake are greatly needed to reduce heart disease risk of this population.

We have formed a diverse partnership to investigate strategies to reduce salt intake in communities including links with food industry, government, community store associations and health/research institutes.

Implications for policy and practice:

The outcomes of this research have potential to influence policy and practice, particularly in encouraging reformulation of processed foods to be lower in salt.

Our research has found:

We have been successful in forming a diverse partnership to work together to reduce salt intake in communities. The results of our research will be available in 2016.

Chief investigator:
Project manager:
Contact information: 
Project dates:

The project commenced in January 2014 and is due for completion in December 2016.

Collaborators:
  • Arnhem Land Progress Association
  • Outback Stores
  • NT Department of Health
  • The George Institute for Global Health
  • Goodman Fielder
Research team:

  1. Jaenke, R., Barzi, F., McMahon, E., Webster, J., & Brimblecombe, J. (2016). Consumer Acceptance of Reformulated Food Products: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Salt-reduced Foods. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, Jan 8. doi: 10.1080/10408398.2015.1118009

  2. McMahon, E., Clarke, R., Jaenke, R., & Brimblecombe, J. (2016). Detection of 12.5% and 25% Salt Reduction in Bread in a Remote Indigenous Australian Community. Nutrients, 8(3). doi: 10.3390/nu8030169

  3. McMahon, E., Webster, J., & Brimblecombe, J. (2017). Effect of 25% Sodium Reduction on Sales of a Top-Selling Bread in Remote Indigenous Australian Community Stores: A Controlled Intervention Trial. Nutrients, 9(3). doi: 10.3390/nu9030214