The Ohio Department of Aging recently placed a ban on saltshakers in nursing homes and other places that serve meals to the elderly. State agencies like this are required to comply with nutritional guidelines put out by the USDA if they wish to receive much needed federal funding. The U.S. Dietary Guidelines require that seniors receive no more than 1,500 mg of sodium per day, or 500mg per meal.
The federal Older Americans Act provides states with funding for certain nutritional programs, which the states disburse to groups such as nursing homes and Meals on Wheels.
While some might argue that a lower sodium diet is a good thing, this federal guideline on salt is actually bad for senior citizen’s health. According to a recent study published in the American Journal of Hypertension, that amount of salt is not only too low, but could cause dire health consequences, including morbidity and mortality.
Mild sodium deficiency is also a very common form of electrolyte imbalance in seniors. It can cause walking impairments, attention deficit and can cause a very high frequency of falls.
“Spending your golden years in a retirement home with a low-salt diet will convert your last years to a long, chronic illness,” wrote the late Canadian cardiologist Dr. Isaac Shleser, who treated elderly patients for five decades.
Other research has shown that it is almost impossible to have a nutritionally adequate diet while meeting the federal sodium intake limits.
In response to the large amounts of criticism received, the ODA agreed that salt could be provided, but only if federal funds did not pay for it.
What are your thoughts?
