Strategies to Reduce Sodium Intake

An ad hoc consensus committee has been convened by the Institute of Medicine to review and make recommendations about various means that could be employed to reduce dietary sodium intake to levels recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. These means or strategies may address a range of focal points including but not limited to (i) actions by food manufacturers such as new product development and food reformulation, (ii) actions at the government level such as special initiatives and regulatory or legislative options, and (iii) actions by public health professionals and consumer educators.  Attention will be given to fostering innovation and, as appropriate, exploring public-private partnerships and other creative solutions. For more information on the study, including the full statement of task and committee membership, please CLICK HERE.

Sponsors

This study is supported by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration and Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (Office of Public Health and Science, Office of the Secretary), and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (National Institutes of Health).

Committee Membership

The following experts have been appointed to serve on this committee.  To view committee biosketches and provide feedback, please CLICK HERE.*

Chair: Jane E. Henney, University of Cincinnati
Cheryl H. Anderson, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Sonia Angell, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
Lawrence J. Appel, Johns Hopkins University
Gary K. Beauchamp, Monell Chemical Senses Center
Ronette R. Briefel, Mathematica Policy Research
Marsha N. Cohen, University of California--Hastings College of the Law
Christina DeWitt, Oklahoma State University
Greg Drescher, The Culinary Institute of America
Mary K. Muth, RTI International
Robert J. Rubin, Georgetown University School of Medicine
John Ruff, retired Kraft Foods
Glorian Sorensen, Harvard School of Public Health
Elizabeth A. Yetley, retired National Institutes of Health

Project Timeline and Activities

This is a 21-month study. The report is expected to be publicly released by February 2010.

Meetings

At this time, five committee meetings are planned.

• The first committee meeting was held January 13-14, 2009, in Washington, DC and included an open public session during which the study sponsors provided their perspectives for the committee. The three presentations from the open session are posted here.
• The second committee meeting was held March 30-31, 2009 in Washington, DC and included an information-gathering open session on March 30 to gather information for the committee. However, comments can be submitted to the committee at any time at sodiumstrategies@nas.edu.*
• The third committee meeting was closed in its entirety and was held on May 18-19, 2009.
• The fourth committee meeting is scheduled for July 8-9, 2009.
• The fifth and final committee meeting is tentatively scheduled for August 24-25, 2009.

Please contact Emily Ann Miller with any questions about this project at EAMiller@nas.edu.

*PLEASE NOTE that any comments you submit to the committee, through this website or otherwise, including your name and identifying information, will not be kept confidential and will be included in a Public Access File. The National Academies shall be authorized to use any such comments or submissions in accordance with the National Academies’ Terms of Use Statement.