City Councilwoman Proposes New Sodium Warnings In Menus
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Nutritionists have been warning for years about the salt in fast food. Now, a Philadelphia city councilwoman wants a warning on menus.
A bill introduced in council on Thursday would require chain restaurants to label high sodium items.
It's not at all rare for one fast food meal to have more than the full day's recommended allowance of 2,300 milligrams of sodium.
Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown believes one reason for that is that diners don't know it.
"Knowledge is power and when they have it, research tells us, citizens actually make different nutritional decisions," she said.
The city's existing menu labeling law includes calories and fat content, but Brown says sodium is a health concern, too.
"All of the science tells us that sodium is simply bad for you when it comes to your health and high blood pressure," said Brown.
Brown says during hearings on the bill, council will study the results in New York, which two years ago began requiring little salt shaker icons next to items with over 2,300 milligrams of salt.
Penn researchers say a stop sign with the words "sodium warning," would be more effective.
