Rural hispanic parents' ideas about children's salt intake

Objective: To examine knowledge and practices of rural Hispanic immigrant caregivers about children's salt consumption and its health implications. Background: Most adults and children have high daily sodium intake and most adults strongly associate high salt intake with cardiovascular problems. Little is known about the association parents make between salt consumption and health for children. Methods: In California's Central Valley, qualitative interviews in Spanish investigated farmworking parents' views and understandings of dietary salt consumption. Hispanic female caregivers (N=30) were interviewed individually in their homes for 1.5 – 2 hours. Five focus groups were conducted (N=40 new participants), including one group with male caregivers. Interview transcripts were coded and thematically analyzed. Results: Caregivers believe children's excessive salt consumptions harmful, just as for adults. Children were viewed as controlling their own salt intake by age five. Neither salt in home cooking nor added at table was thought problematic, although fresh fruit sprinkled with salt, a culturally-based dietary habit, was acknowledged as salt consumption. Junk food snacks and school meals were identified as major sources of children's dietary salt. Parents preferred salty (savory) over sugary snacks. Sugary snacks were deemed more harmful because of obesity, diabetes, and tooth decay. Conclusion: Parents acknowledge some dietary salt sources consumed and have particular beliefs about the health consequences of salt ingestion. These rural Hispanic immigrant parents feel they lack control of salt content of food prepared or consumed outside the home but underappreciate the domestic sphere's key role, which is under their control.