Sodium and potassium intake in South Africa: an evaluation of 24-hour urine collections in a white, black, and Indian population

Limited number of studies on salt intake has been conducted in the South Africa. The present study established the sodium and potassium excretion (24-hour urine collection) of three different South African populations. In total, 692 successful 24-hour urine collections were analyzed for sodium, potassium, and iodine levels. The median sodium and potassium excretion was 122.9 and 33.5 mmol/d, respectively, and the median salt intake was 7.2 g/d. The majority (92.8%) of the population did not meet the recommended potassium intake/d, and 65.6% consumed more than 6 g of salt/d. Potassium excretion showed a linear relationship with salt intake (P-trend ≤ .001). The median sodium-to-potassium ratio was 3.5. These findings support the South African government's sodium reduction legislation, as well as global initiatives. More consideration should be given to promoting the intake of potassium-rich foods, as this may have a greater public health impact than focusing only on dietary sodium reduction.