Most people tend to consume more salt but less vegetables and fruits.

Data from the World Health Organization STEPwise approach to noncommunicable disease risk factor surveillance (STEPS) conducted by the Ministry of Health in 2021 showed that about 59% of the population do not consume enough 400 grams of vegetables and fruits daily as recommended. Meanwhile, up to 78.2% of them constantly use salt, fish sauce or salty spices in their meals; and 8.7% always or frequently eat fast food containing high sodium content. On average, a Vietnamese adult consumes 8.1g of salt per day. Hazards of too much salt to health Dr. Tran Quoc Bao, head of the NCD Bureau under the General Department of Preventive Medicine, the Ministry of Health, told Suc khoe & Doi song news site that even though salt is essential for humans, salt redundancy is harmful to human health, causing high blood pressure, stroke, heart attack and other cardiovascular diseases. In addition, salt redundancy increases the risks of stomach cancer, kidney failure, osteoporosis and several health disorders. According to experts from the Vietnam National Cancer Hospital, long-term consumption of sodium-rich food is not good for human health and may increase the risk of stomach cancer. Sodium chloride facilitates the development of Helicobacter pylori (HP), the main bacterium causing stomach cancer. Though HP is not the only cause of stomach cancer, those infected by these bacteria have high risk of this cancer. The habit of eating salty food will lead to sodium accumulation in the body beyond the functioning capacity of the kidneys. This may cause vasoconstriction (constriction of blood vessels), which forces the heart to work harder, and this in turn gives rise to high blood pressure, heart failure, heart disease and stroke. Long-term sodium consumption inhibits the absorption of calcium of the body, which may cause osteoporosis (decrease of bone mineral density and bone mass). Women in their post menopause, diabetes patients and old people are also at high risk of osteoporosis. Long-term consumption of sodium increases the risk of several illnesses, especially high blood pressure, or hypertension, which is currently found even in those under 40 years old. Therefore, it is a must to consume less salty foods right from young ages so as to protect human health at present and in the future. As recommended by the WHO, an adult should consume less than 5g of salt per day to protect their health. Experts from the Vietnam National Cancer Hospital also warn that people should protect their health by restricting the use of salt in their daily meals: Restricting the consumption of sodium-rich foods and salty spices such as ham, instant noodles, snacks, ready-made sauces, cheese, dried fish, salted roast nuts, to name but a few; decreasing the amount of salt added to dishes in daily meals; restricting the use of salty sauces in daily meals; and using less salty sauces.