Sodium content and energy of 47 commercial dishes in four restaurants in Beijing / 中华预防医学杂志

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the sodium content and energy of commercial dishes in 4 Chinese restaurants in Beijing.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From June to August of 2011, 4 medium-sized restaurants were selected by convenience sampling method. Overall, 47 commercial dishes (including 9 cold dishes and 38 cooked dishes) consumed at least 6 times by consumers and provided by at least 2 restaurants were selected. One complete serving was selected for each dish to investigate its energy and sodium content, and calculate its sodium density.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The median value of sodium content in cold dishes and cooked dishes were 580, 522 mg/100 g (Z = 0.83, P > 0.05) or 1427, 2301 mg/serving (Z = 2.03, P < 0.05); the median sodium density for cold and cooked dishes were 1902 and 670 mg/1000 kJ (Z = 2.81, P < 0.01); the median value of energy in cold dishes and cooked dishes were 514, 717 kJ/100 g (Z = 2.15, P < 0.05) or 1113, 3492 kJ/serving (Z = 4.03, P < 0.05). Of the 47 dishes, 46.8% (22/47) exceeded the daily recommendation of sodium content for Chinese residents (2200 mg).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The commercial dishes in medium-sized Chinese restaurants provide a relatively higher energy and sodium. Cold dishes contain less energy but have high sodium density, so the sodium from these dishes could not be ignored.</p>