Determinación de la cantidad de cloruro de sodio en frituras de plátano verde y evaluación del nivel de sal en la etiqueta nutricional

Abstract

In Ecuador, food labels and nutritional traffic lights are authorized by the ARCSA, where a correct publication of sodium chloride (NaCl) values is very important, since, according to the MSP in a publication made in May 2023, it indicates that arterial hypertension is one of the main causes of death in Ecuador. In addition, a survey carried out by INEC in collaboration with the MSP and the WHO in 2018 indicates that 19.8% of Ecuadorian adults live with this pathology (PAHO, 2015). The project determined the amount of sodium chloride in green plantain fritters snacks from 3 brands from Cuenca, so that the results obtained are compared with the values recorded on the product labels, thus verifying their concordance. The quantities of NaCl were obtained using the Mohr method which was used in 12 samples of each brand. It is worth mentioning that a descriptive study was carried out in order to allow or facilitate the comparison of the results obtained for NaCl with the quantities presented on the labels. Results: The average mg of sodium determined experimentally for brand A does not coincide with what is indicated on the nutritional label, and it was also outside the range allowed to have a green traffic light in the salt category. Conclusion: The evaluation of the sodium chloride and sodium content in green banana snacks showed coincidences with the labeling, except for brand A.