--- description: The New York City health department says they will propose the rule for chain restaurants Wednesday title: New York Officials Want High-Sodium Warnings image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt22384656d1e1264d/698853bda988cae4146b2f08/salt.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Health](/section/health/) ## Health Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Nutrition](/tag/nutrition/) ## Nutrition Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # New York Officials Want High-Sodium Warnings in Chain Restaurants  by [Eliana Dockterman](/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Correspondent Jun 9, 2015 7:00 PM CUT  Studio shot of salt shaker Studio shot of salt shakerGetty Images  by [Eliana Dockterman](/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Correspondent Jun 9, 2015 7:00 PM CUT New York City may become the first in the U.S. to require [warning labels](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/221ecb8c1b3543b5a502b4aea5cef5a2/apnewsbreak-nyc-officials-want-high-sodium-warning-menus "undefined") about high sodium content on menus in chain restaurants. The city’s Health Department will propose Wednesday that eateries add a salt shaker symbol to menu items that contain more than the recommended daily limit of 2,300 milligrams of sodium, equal to about one teaspoon of salt, the Associated Press reports. Studies show that people who eat more sodium are at greater risk of developing high blood pressure, which in turn contributes to heart disease, kidney problems and the possibility of a stroke. But doctors say some people are more sensitive to salt than others, so it’s difficult to pinpoint a strict limit to sodium consumption. The average American consumes around 3,300 mg of sodium per day, 1,000 mg over the recommended daily intake. About three-fourths of that sodium intake comes from prepared or processed restaurant foods. Only about one in 10 Americans meet the one teaspoon of salt per day guideline. **Read Next:** [FDA Wants to Limit Your Salt Intake. Is That a Good Thing?](http://time.com/2895763/fda-wants-to-limit-your-salt-intake-is-that-a-good-thing/ "undefined") \[[_AP_](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/221ecb8c1b3543b5a502b4aea5cef5a2/apnewsbreak-nyc-officials-want-high-sodium-warning-menus "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3914855/new-york-sodium-warnings-salt/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3914855/new-york-sodium-warnings-salt/"},"headline":"New York Officials Want High-Sodium Warnings in Chain Restaurants","datePublished":"2015-06-09T19:00:53.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T08:03:32.789Z","description":"High salt intake is linked to a raft of health problems","url":"https://time.com/3914855/new-york-sodium-warnings-salt/","keywords":["Nutrition","diet","New York City"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt22384656d1e1264d/698853bda988cae4146b2f08/salt.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eliana Dockterman","jobTitle":"Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt22384656d1e1264d/698853bda988cae4146b2f08/salt.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"salt","caption":"salt","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/nutrition/","name":"Nutrition"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3914855/new-york-sodium-warnings-salt/","name":"New York Officials Want High-Sodium Warnings in Chain Restaurants"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"The Truth About Fat","description":"When you want to lose weight or get healthy, what is the first thing you would normally cut from your diet? 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