Food Safety Focus (210th Issue, January 2024) – Article 1
How to Choose Congee Wisely to Avoid High Sodium Intake
Reported by Dr. Anna SP TANG, Scientific Officer,
Risk Communication Section, Centre for Food Safety
The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) released the study results on the Sodium Content in Chinese Congee last month. Although none of the samples were considered “high” in sodium (i.e. over 600mg/100g), the sodium intake from consuming one bowl of certain types of congee, such as congee with pig's liver, may already reach the World Health Organization (WHO)'s recommended daily intake upper limit due to the considerable volume consumed. Here we will explore how to reduce sodium intake and to eat this classic Chinese favourite in a healthier way.
The WHO Guidelines on Reducing Sodium Intake
Excessive sodium intake is closely related to hypertension, which is a risk factor for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including cardiovascular diseases and stroke. The WHO recommends a daily salt intake of less than 5g (i.e. around 2,000mg of sodium) for adults. In Hong Kong, according to the Population Health Survey 2020-22 conducted by the Department of Health, persons aged 15-84 years consumed 8.5g of salt (i.e. around 3,400mg sodium) per day, which exceeded the WHO's recommendation of salt intake per day for adults. Therefore, it is important to reduce sodium intake in the diet of Hong Kong people.
Risk Assessment Study on Sodium Content in Chinese Congee
The Study
174 samples including 12 types of Chinese congee with ingredients, as well as the plain congee base and seasoned congee base available as the choice of congee base for cooking, were collected from local Chinese restaurants, fast food restaurants and congee shops; and analysed for sodium contents. The study results are shown in Table. The sodium contents of various samples of congee with ingredients ranged from 33mg/100g to 460mg/100g, with an average of 270mg/100g. The wide variations in sodium content observed within the same type of congee samples highlighted the potential for sodium reduction in these congees by the trade. The sodium content of plain congee base was substantially lower than that of seasoned congee base, indicating that sodium intake from the consumption of congee can be lowered to a great extent by choosing plain congee instead of seasoned congee as the base for making congee with ingredients.
Congee Types with the Highest Sodium Contents
Congee with pig's liver, congee with chicken, congee with pig giblets and congee with preserved egg and pork had the highest average sodium contents. This is probably due to the naturally higher sodium content in liver and other organ meats, and the higher amounts of seasoning typically used to marinate chicken, pork and meat ingredients.
Congee Types with the Lowest Sodium Contents
Pumpkin, fish and sweet corn congee types had the lowest average sodium contents because vegetable ingredients and fish are usually not seasoned/marinated before cooking, while ginger and spices are often added instead to the fish fillets used to make congee.
|
|
Type of Congee Product |
Average Sodium Content [range](mg/100g) |
Mean Sodium Intake per bowl of congee |
Contribution to WHO's Recommended Daily Sodium Intake Upper Limit (2000mg) |
|
1 |
Congee with preserved egg and pork (皮蛋瘦肉粥) |
290 [250-350] |
1600 |
80% |
|
2 |
Congee with dried fish, peanut and pork (柴魚花生粥) |
240 [33-400] |
1200 |
60% |
|
3 |
Boat congee (艇仔粥) |
270 [220-340] |
1500 |
75% |
|
4 |
Congee with pig giblets (及第粥) |
290 [250-350] |
1800 |
90% |
|
5 |
Congee with fish (魚片粥 /魚腩粥) |
220 [170-260] |
1300 |
65% |
|
6 |
Congee with pig's blood (豬紅粥) |
270 [170-360] |
1500 |
75% |
|
7 |
Congee with beef (牛肉粥) |
260 [170-320] |
1400 |
70% |
|
8 |
Congee with dace ball (鯪魚球粥) |
280 [250-340] |
1600 |
80% |
|
9 |
Congee with pig's liver (豬膶粥) |
330 [230-460] |
2000 |
100% |
|
10 |
Congee with chicken (雞粥) |
300 [240-390] |
1800 |
90% |
|
11 |
Congee with sweet corn (粟米粥) |
220 [160-310] |
1200 |
60% |
|
12 |
Congee with pumpkin (南瓜粥) |
180 [130-240] |
940 |
47% |
|
A |
Plain congee base (白粥底) |
8.6 [3.5-37] |
43 |
2% |
|
B |
Seasoned congee base (有味粥底) |
110 [6.4-300] |
1000 |
50% |
|
|
OVERALL |
3.5 - 460 |
43 - 2000 |
2% - 100% |
Table : Sodium contents & intake of one bowl of congee (contribution to WHO's recommended daily sodium intake upper limit)
Healthier Ways to Eat Congee to Take in Less Sodium
There are healthier ways to enjoy a bowl of congee to avoid too much sodium intake: choosing ingredients with lower sodium contents such as fish and vegetables; choosing less internal organs and meat with high sodium contents; sharing a bowl of congee when the portion is large; and requesting for plain congee instead of seasoned congee as a base makes a great difference in lowering sodium intake from congee. The trade should strive to use less salt and seasoning in preparing the congee base and ingredients, offer the choice of smaller portions of congee to consumers, and provide the choice of plain congee with little or no salt added as the base for cooking congee in addition to the regular seasoned congee base. Furthermore, using less salt or seasoning when preparing congee at home is a great way to control and reduce the amount of sodium intake.
Figure : Making healthy choices to reduce the amount of sodium intake from congee: choose ingredients with lower sodium contents such as fish and vegetables, choose plain congee with little or no seasoning added as the base, and to consume smaller portions
Advice to Consumers
- Pay attention to the sodium contents in Chinese congee and choose carefully.
- Order congee cooked with plain congee base instead of seasoned congee base.
- Pay attention to the amount of congee consumed. Consider sharing the congee when the portion is large.
- Maintain a balanced diet with variety.
Advice to the Trade
- Reduce the sodium contents of the congee base and that of congee with ingredients through product reformulation by making reference to the CFS's "Trade Guidelines for Reducing Sodium in Foods" (e.g. by choosing ingredients with lower sodium content, and using natural ingredients for flavouring and marinating).
- Provide the choice of plain congee with little or no seasoning added as the base for cooking congee with ingredients.
- Apart from providing the standard portion size of congee, offer congee in a smaller portion size for consumers to choose based on their needs.