I know you love hearing about sodium, and it's one of my favorite topics. Recently, we've covered low sodium shopping lists and guides to lower sodium, and today I'm back with a sodium update from the Food and Drug Administration! Recently, the FDA released potential guidelines for voluntary sodium reduction.  They're currently titled “Voluntary Sodium Reduction Goals: Target Mean and Upper Bound Concentrations for Sodium in Commercially Processed, Packaged, and Prepared Foods” and you can read them yourself here.The comment period on these guidelines has closed, and the FDA is now into crafting the final version of their guidance, which means that we should be getting the actual formal version very soon.This is fantastic news for educators and consumers alike, though of course there has been some controversy, namely from The Salt Institute, which is the trade association for the salt industry. Luckily, many scientific journals have come out in support of these guidelines (here's just one example) which are voluntary and allow up to 10 years for companies to comply.For more information about the FDA's guidelines for voluntary sodium reduction in packaged foods, check out these links...

• Voluntary Sodium Reduction Goals: Target Mean and Upper Bound Concentrations for Sodium in Commercially Processed, Packaged, and Prepared Foods; Draft Guidance for Industry; Availability from the FDA
• Sodium Reduction—Saving Lives by Putting Choice Into Consumers’ Hands from the CDC and JAMA
• Sodium Reduction from the FDA
• Frequently Asked Questions on FDA’s Sodium Reduction Strategy from the FDA
• F.D.A. Proposes Guidelines for Salt Added to Food from the New York Times
• Open for comment: the FDA’s new guidance for voluntary salt reduction from Food Politics
• Draft Guidance for Industry: Voluntary Sodium Reduction Goals: Target Mean and Upper Bound Concentrations for Sodium in Commercially Processed, Packaged, and Prepared Foods from the FDA

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