Estimated impacts of mandatory sodium reformulation targets on sodium consumption, health outcomes, health sector costs and health equity in Aotearoa New Zealand

Mandating WHO sodium reduction benchmarks for 58 packaged food categories in Aotearoa New Zealand is estimated to cut sodium intake by 470 mg/day per person (22%).

• Why it matters: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in Aotearoa New Zealand, including among Māori, and sodium intake is a modifiable risk factor.
• What they did: Using nationally representative household food purchase data, packaged food sodium content, and dietary intake, the study modeled baseline sodium intake in 2011 and projected changes after applying the WHO benchmarks. A multi-state life-table model estimated lifetime health-adjusted life years (HALYs) and health-sector costs (2011 NZ$, 3% discount) for a 2011 population of 4.4 million, including subgroup analyses for Māori.
• The result: The reformulation is projected to generate 55,600 HALYs (95% UI: 19,100–90,000) and NZ$535.2 million in health-system cost savings (95% UI: 183.0–914.6 million), with Māori gaining 11,600 HALYs.

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