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Cardiovascular diseases are the cause of four out of ten deaths in Europe, or 10,000 deaths per day and 4 million per year, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Wednesday, urging Europeans to eat less salt.
“Implementing targeted policies to reduce salt consumption by 25% could save around 900,000 lives from cardiovascular diseases by 2030“, said Hans Kluge, regional director of WHO Europe quoted in a press release.
On the Old Continent, one in three adults between 30 and 79 years old suffers from hypertension, and it is often because of their salt consumption.
Fifty-one of the region’s 53 countries have average daily salt intake above the WHO recommended maximum level of five grams (one teaspoon), mainly due to processed food and snacking.
“High salt intake increases blood pressure, which is one of the main risk factors for cardiovascular illnesses such as the heart attack and the cerebrovascular accidents (CVA)“, underlined the WHO.
Europe has the highest blood pressure prevalence in the world. According to the organization, men in the region – which extends to Central Asia – have a more than double the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease than women.
In addition, the divide is also geographical: the probability of dying young (between 30 and 69 years old) from a disease of this type is almost five times higher in Eastern Europe and Central Asia than in Western Europe.
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