Nothing goes better with salty than sweet and that might be the reason why kids who snack on salty foods tend to drink calorie-rich sodas and put on more weight, an article in Hypertension suggests.
It’s well known that eating salty foods can make you feel thirsty. A glass of water is a healthy, calorie-free solution. However, when British researchers looked at the eating habits of more than 1,600 kids (ages 4 to 18), they found that eating more salty snacks usually translated into drinking more sweet sodas. In fact, it was predicted that reducing the amount of salt eaten by 1 g/d would lead to a 27 g/d reduction in soft drink consumption. Their total fluid intake was also higher than that of other children.
The researchers say that if children took in half as much sodium (about three grams less of salt per day), they’d likely drink 2.3 fewer sugar-sweetened soft drinks every week. This means that, although high sodium levels can increase the risk of high blood pressure alone, it could also contribute to heart disease by encouraging weight gain. Because soft drinks often contain between 107 and 155 calories, depending on serving size, reducing salt in kids’ diets could help reduce rates of childhood obesity.
