THE saltiest pizza on sale in the UK is worse than sea water, research has revealed.
A medium-sized The Sizzler with standard mozzarella and stuffed crust from Domino's contains a whopping 21.38g – compared to 18.88g in the Atlantic Ocean.
Other top takeaway offenders were the medium House Special Tandoor Chicken Double Decadence with standard mozzarella (20.77g), also from Domino's, as well as seven others from the fast food giant.
Papa John's' All the Meats with stuffed crust also appeared on the top 10 list, with 15.02g.
Supermarket pizzas contained significantly less salt, but still way over the recommended daily intake of just 6g, or one teaspoon.
The worst to buy in store was the Pepperoni Party from The Pizza Company, available in Tesco, which has 9.6g of salt.
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This is more than three McDonald's Big Mac and fries.
Close behind was the Stuffed Crust Pepperoni Power by Sainsbury's (8.28g), and Lewis Capaldi's Big Sexy Meaty One (8.2g), which you can get in Iceland.
Campaigners from Action on Salt (AoS), which crunched the numbers, are calling on the government to introduce a tax on salt to reduce intake.
They accused firms of showing a "complete disregard for public health" by putting outrageously high levels in their meals.
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This included having more than three times the suggested allowance in a single pizza – making it saltier than the same weight of sea water.
Salt enhances savoury flavours, balances sweetness, and helps suppress others, such as bitterness.
It is also important in preserving foods – but too much sodium in the diet can lead to high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke.
The NHS recommends adults consume no more than 6g of salt a day.
The advised limit for children is between 2g and 6g dependent on age. Babies should have less than 1g a day.
AoS said that out of 1,387 pizzas it surveyed, takeaway varieties contained more than double the amount of salt than those bought in supermarkets.
Some 66 per cent of those sold in restaurants and takeaways contained 6g or more salt per pizza, according to the group.
A separate poll by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) found most Brits have no idea what the recommended maximum daily salt intake is.
They were also not confident in estimating how much they consume.
The saltiest takeaway and supermarket pizzas
TAKEAWAYS
- Domino's – The Sizzler Standard Mozzarella Stuffed Crust Medium (21.38g)
- Domino's – House Special Tandoor Chicken Standard Mozzarella Double Decadence Medium (20.77g)
- Domino's – The Sizzler Standard Mozzarella Double Decadence Medium (20.2g)
- Domino's – The Sizzler Reduced Fat Mozzarella Double Decadence Medium (20.12g)
- Domino's – The Sizzler Reduced Fat Mozzarella Classic Crust Medium (19.65g)
- Domino's – Scrummy Standard Mozzarella Double Decadence Medium (19.54g)
- Domino's – House Special Tandoori Chicken Reduced Fat Mozzarella Stuffed Crust Medium (19.16g)
- Domino's – House Special Tandoori Chicken Reduced Fat Mozzarella Double Decadence Medium (19.08g)
- Papa John's – All The Meats Stuffed Crust (15.02g)
SUPERMARKETS
- The Pizza Company – Takeaway Pizza: The Pepperoni Party (9.2g)
- Sainsbury's – Stuffed Crust Pepperoni Power (8.28g)
- Freiberger – Lewis Capaldi's Pizza The Big Sexy Meaty One (8.2g)
- Chicago Town – Stuffed Crust Takeaway Loaded Pepperoni Pizza (stuffed with cheesy sauce) (8g)
- Chicago Town – Limited Edition Stuffed Crust Takeaway Sweet Honey BBQ Salami (7.6g)
- The Pizza Company – Pizza The Meat Metropolis (7.56g)
- The Pizza Company – Takeaway Pizza: The Big Cheese 588g (7.2g)
- Chicago Town – Stuffed Crust Takeaway Loaded Cheese (stuffed with cheesy sauce) (7.2g)
- Franco Manca – Spicy Salami Fried Onion and Chilli-Infused Honey (7.18g)
John Maingay, the BHF's director of policy and influencing, said: "There is a clear case for helping people eat more healthily by taking salt out of food before it is bought.
"We need government action to drive all parts of the food industry to play their part and reduce the amount of salt they are serving to us."
Both the BHF and AoS point towards the soft drinks industry levy, introduced a year ago, as a successful regulatory way to try to tackle the issue.
The average amount of sugar a UK household consumed via soft drinks dropped by 30g per week, and it has not affected sales of soft drinks, they said.
Sonia Pombo, registered nutritionist and AoS campaign lead, said: "We know it is possible to reduce salt in pizzas, as demonstrated by some responsible businesses, so there is no reason why others can't also do so."
Mhairi Brown, registered nutritionist and AoS policy lead, said: "The government showed brilliant leadership when it launched the soft drinks industry levy, a tax on sugary drinks manufacturers that lowered the amount of sugar the nation was unknowingly drinking without raising prices.
"The Chancellor must now expand this successful levy to food companies who refuse to lower excessive salt levels in their food, to protect our health, our economy and our NHS."
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: "Thanks to our salt reduction programme, the amount of salt in food has fallen by around 20 per cent – helping to prevent nearly 70,000 heart attacks and strokes while reducing pressure on the NHS.
"We're also taking firm action by restricting the location of foods high in fat, salt, or sugar, which will bring health benefits of over £57 billion and save the NHS £4billion.
"We will continue to work closely with industry to make it easier for people to make healthier choices."
A spokesperson from Domino’s Pizza Group said: "At Domino’s we offer over 400 choices of pizza designed to suit a range of dietary requirements and preferences, to be shared with friends and family.
"Within our wide range of pizzas, there are large variations in salt content, including – as the report points out – pizzas where the salt content has been reduced significantly.
"Action on Salt’s work is important, but they have failed to make clear that our medium pizzas are significantly more substantial than supermarket pizzas in the survey and feed up to three people.
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"When shared in that way, most of our range is below the government’s daily targets for salt and calories.
"We recognise the importance of offering our customers more choice, and we are continuing to explore new ways to reduce the salt content of our pizzas."
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