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Effectiveness of a perforated spoon for reducing salt intake in a university cafeteria
Aya Murayama1, Aimi Hamasu1, Ikumi Tabata1
1Faculty of Environmental & Symbiotic Sciences, Prefectural University of Kumamoto, Kumamoto, Japan.
Objective:
This study investigated the salt reduction effect of using a perforated spoon to eat ramen noodles.
Design:
Randomized crossover.
Setting:
University cafeteria.
Participants And Procedures:
A total of 39 male and 38 female university students participated in the study. Participants consumed ramen under two conditions: (1) using chopsticks and a regular spoon ('regular spoon condition') and (2) using chopsticks and a perforated spoon ('perforated spoon condition'). Soup intake, salt intake, and subjective ratings of hunger, fullness, and palatability were compared between conditions. After excluding those who withdrew, 35 male and 34 female students were included in the final analysis. Sex-specific comparisons were conducted.
Results:
Among male participants, the median (25th, 75th percentiles) soup intake was 95.0 (77.0, 236.0) g with the perforated spoon and 141.0 (93.0, 347.0) g with the regular spoon (P = 0.004); salt intake was 2.4 (2.1, 4.9) g and 3.1 (2.4, 6.9) g (P = 0.022), respectively. Among female participants, soup intake was 84.5 (71.0, 122.0) g and 129.5 (95.5, 165.3) g (P < 0.001), and salt intake was 2.2 (1.9, 2.8) g and 3.0 (2.4, 3.6) g (P < 0.001), respectively. Post-meal satiety and palatability did not differ significantly between the two conditions (P > 0.05).
Conclusions:
Using a perforated spoon during ramen consumption significantly reduced soup and salt intake in both sexes without compromising satiety or palatability. These findings suggest that providing perforated spoons as standard utensils in institutional cafeterias may support salt-reduction efforts, although further validation in other populations and settings is needed.
