Salt news leaves bitter taste

Anyone who eats at McDonald's is probably not under the illusion that they're consuming health food. But Canadians might have been under the false assumption that the junk food they're enjoying is no more unhealthful than it is in other parts of the world - maybe even marginally better than in some places.
It turns out it's worse.
British-based World Action on Salt and Health (WASH) analyzed the salt content in about 260 products from brands such as Nestle, Burger King, Subway, KFC, Kellogg's and McDonald's. The salt content in foods studied varied widely from country to country and it was usually the Canadian versions that were found to be the saltiest.
The study found, for instance, Burger King onion rings bought in Canada contain 1.7 grams of salt per 100 grams but less than 0.4 grams in Britain.
Perhaps even more surprising was the salt content found in supposedly healthful products, like Kellogg's All Bran. Canadians making this cereal part of their healthy breakfast are eating 2.15 grams of salt with each 100-gram bowlful, while Americans consume only 0.65. And here we thought the only difference was the French translation on the box.
It's baffling to understand what motivates the companies surveyed to vary the salt in their products from country to country.
Are Canadians thought to enjoy saltier food? Is it because in the U.S. back bacon is known as Canadian bacon - even though we probably don't ingest any more of it than they do south of the border? Is it that there's a powerful lobby by the Windsor and Sifto companies?
It's impossible to believe that the world would consider Canadians have a less sensitive palate than the British who deep fry even their Mars bars or Americans who eat the Jimmy Dean chocolate chip pancake and sausage on a stick. (We're not making it up; Google it.)
WASH nutritionist Katharine Jenner asks, "If Kellogg's can provide Spain with lower salt Cornflakes, why can't the rest of the world's consumers have them too?" You have to wonder.
Sure, in some cases we have only ourselves to blame for our high-fat, high-sodium, high-calorie, low-nutrient diet. But if the 260 products studied by WASH are anything to go by, we're steeped in salt before we even get to our mid-morning snack.
It's enough to put up your blood pressure.