Quiz any kids about their favorite hangouts and you are likely to find Pizza Hut and Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) on the top of their list. It’s the kids who give these fast food companies a roaring business but the companies seem to care less about the health of these very kids who patronize them.
Consensus Action on Salt and Health revealed shocking facts about the amount of salt the fast food giants added in the meals. The amount of salt recommended for a six year old is 3g but take her to Pizza hut and she ends up eating four times the recommended amount.i.e.12 g if she happens to order a meal deal including a starter, pizza, garlic bread and potato wedges.
If you are a family of four and order family ‘meal deals’ such as “Pizza Plus for 4”, even then each of your family members could end up eating 12.3 g of salt. The same goes to a shared KFC Deluxe Boneless Box which would end up with 5.2g of salt for each person almost a day’s salt limit for the adult.
It is a known fact that consuming high amounts of salt increases the blood pressure, and the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
Graham MacGregor, a professor of cardiovascular medicine said,
Salt acts as a long-term toxin that puts up blood pressure in both children and adults and thereby causes strokes and heart attacks.
While kids having such foods a once-in-month-treat are not highly affected by it, it’s those who literally live on these foods who are at the highest risk. Fast food giants like Mcdonalds and Burger King claim to have reduced the salt levels in their meals and it is expected that others follow the trend to show that they care about the customers who patronize them.
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