Too much salt in French diet
Classic French baguette and cheeses mean majority of French people are exceeding recommended limits on salt intake
NINE out of 10 French people are consuming too much salt in their food, a new study of people's dietary habits has found.
The research by NutriNet-Santé found that, although the average person's daily salt intake has fallen in the past decade from 10g to 8.4g, this is still above the recommended French and European limits.
Some 95 per cent of men and 82 per cent of women are exceeding the European recommended level of 6g a day.
Similarly, about a third of women and two thirds of men consume more than the 8g-a-day limit set by French health authorities in 2008.
The findings are based on anonymous nutrition surveys filled out by 140,000 people of all ages around France.
Bread, biscuits, cooked meats and cheese were the biggest contributors. A quarter of people's intake came from adding salt to food themselves.
Earlier this year, 19 of France's biggest food manufacturers have signed a deal with the government promising to cut the amount of salt they use in products.
School canteens have also applied new rules on the use of salt, which must be added by the cooks and not left on the table for children to help themselves.
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