Some of the most popular family restaurants are serving children’s meals with dangerously high levels of salt, a survey has revealed. More than a quarter of meals sampled contained over an entire day’s salt allocation for a child under the age of four. Experts warned last night that chain restaurants’ disregard for child health risks creating a generation addicted to salt, leading to raised blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes. Scroll down for video . Worst offender: Burger King Kid’s Veggie Bean Burger (pictured) with small fries contained 4.6g of salt per serving, the equivalent of nine packets of crisps . Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash), a charity backed by leading doctors, carried out a spot check of 218 children’s meals at 23 popular chain restaurants. It found that 28 per cent of the meals surveyed contained more than 2g of salt, an entire day’s allowance for a child under four, and 7 per cent contained more than 3g, the allowance for a child under seven. The worst meals sampled contained as much salt as nine packets of crisps, the researchers discovered. Cash chairman Professor Graham MacGregor, a heart expert at Queen Mary University London, said: ‘Evidence suggests dietary habits in childhood can influence eating patterns later in life. ‘Salt should therefore not be given to children as this could lead to a “salt addiction” – a preference for salt throughout their lifetime. This will consequently raise their blood pressure which tracks into adulthood, leading to increased risk of developing strokes and heart attacks.’ Cash nutritionist Sonia Pombo said: ‘It’s a scandal that very few restaurants are taking salt reduction seriously, especially when the health of our children is at risk.’ The meal with the most salt content was the Burger King Kid’s Veggie Bean Burger with small fries, which contained 4.6g of salt per serving, the equivalent of nine packets of crisps. Hungry Horse’s ham with mashed potato and baked beans contained 4.2g of salt per serving. And Loch Fyne Seafood and Grill bangers and mash with gravy contained 4g. Other meals in the top ten for salt came from Beefeater, Bella Italia, JD Wetherspoon and Nando’s. Restaurants included in the study insisted they had already reduced salt content in their meals. A Burger King spokesman said: ‘Burger King Corp has successfully reduced the sodium content in many of its products around the world.’ A spokesman for Greene King, the owner of Hungry Horse and Loch Fyne, said: ‘We are committed to reducing the levels of salt within our supply chain and many products already used in our children’s menus are reduced salt, such as burgers, sausages and baked beans in Hungry Horse.’ A Beefeater spokesman said: ‘As a popular family friendly restaurant visited by thousands of people every week, we are constantly working hard to bring down the salt content of our meals and we take our responsibilities towards public health very seriously. Bella Italia said: ‘Our menu is varied with plenty of options for children of all ages, tastes and requirements, and it features a great selection of vegetables, salad, pasta, fish and chicken.’ Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: ‘Whilst certain popular meal combinations such as chicken nuggets, chips and baked beans have higher salt levels, we also include several lower salt combinations or meal.’ Nando’s did not reply to a request for comment.
More than 25% of meals contained entire day's allocation for those under 4 .
Burger King Kid’s Veggie Bean Burger and small fries contained 4.6g salt .
Other offenders included meals from Hungry Horse, Beefeater and Nando's .
Experts warned restaurant chains are creating generation addicted to salt .
Some of the most popular family restaurants are serving children’s meals with dangerously high levels of salt, a survey has revealed. More than a quarter of meals sampled contained over an entire day’s salt allocation for a child under the age of four. Experts warned last night that chain restaurants’ disregard for child health risks creating a generation addicted to salt, leading to raised blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes. Scroll down for video . Worst offender: Burger King Kid’s Veggie Bean Burger (pictured) with small fries contained 4.6g of salt per serving, the equivalent of nine packets of crisps . Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash), a charity backed by leading doctors, carried out a spot check of 218 children’s meals at 23 popular chain restaurants. It found that 28 per cent of the meals surveyed contained more than 2g of salt, an entire day’s allowance for a child under four, and 7 per cent contained more than 3g, the allowance for a child under seven. The worst meals sampled contained as much salt as nine packets of crisps, the researchers discovered. Cash chairman Professor Graham MacGregor, a heart expert at Queen Mary University London, said: ‘Evidence suggests dietary habits in childhood can influence eating patterns later in life. ‘Salt should therefore not be given to children as this could lead to a “salt addiction” – a preference for salt throughout their lifetime. This will consequently raise their blood pressure which tracks into adulthood, leading to increased risk of developing strokes and heart attacks.’ Cash nutritionist Sonia Pombo said: ‘It’s a scandal that very few restaurants are taking salt reduction seriously, especially when the health of our children is at risk.’ The meal with the most salt content was the Burger King Kid’s Veggie Bean Burger with small fries, which contained 4.6g of salt per serving, the equivalent of nine packets of crisps. Hungry Horse’s ham with mashed potato and baked beans contained 4.2g of salt per serving. And Loch Fyne Seafood and Grill bangers and mash with gravy contained 4g. Other meals in the top ten for salt came from Beefeater, Bella Italia, JD Wetherspoon and Nando’s. Restaurants included in the study insisted they had already reduced salt content in their meals. A Burger King spokesman said: ‘Burger King Corp has successfully reduced the sodium content in many of its products around the world.’ A spokesman for Greene King, the owner of Hungry Horse and Loch Fyne, said: ‘We are committed to reducing the levels of salt within our supply chain and many products already used in our children’s menus are reduced salt, such as burgers, sausages and baked beans in Hungry Horse.’ A Beefeater spokesman said: ‘As a popular family friendly restaurant visited by thousands of people every week, we are constantly working hard to bring down the salt content of our meals and we take our responsibilities towards public health very seriously. Bella Italia said: ‘Our menu is varied with plenty of options for children of all ages, tastes and requirements, and it features a great selection of vegetables, salad, pasta, fish and chicken.’ Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: ‘Whilst certain popular meal combinations such as chicken nuggets, chips and baked beans have higher salt levels, we also include several lower salt combinations or meal.’ Nando’s did not reply to a request for comment.
entire day’s salt allocation for a child under risks creating a generation addicted to salt, offender: Burger King Kid’s Veggie Bean Burger (pictured) with small fries contained 4.6g of and Nando’s. Restaurants included in the study Hungry Horse and Loch Fyne, said: ‘We are