[Family and individual consumption of table salt in the State of Mexico]

The present study was carried out within the framework of the State Program for the Fluoridation of Table Salt in the State of Mexico. An estimate of the daily consumption of salt was carried out by home interviews in four communities within the state. Such communities covered a wide range of urban-rural population and socio-economic status, as well as several concentrations of fluoride in drinking water and sources of distribution of salt. Results showed that the daily consumption of salt for children 1-3 years old had a mean of 1.9 g/day, while children 4-6 years old consumed a mean of 3.4 g/day. Adult males (23-50 years old) consumed a mean of 6.9 g/day and adult females (23-50 years old) consumed 5.4 g/day. Although these estimates may overestimate the real intake of table salt, based on these data the additional intake of fluoride would be of 0.5, 0.8, 1.7 y 1.3 ppm/day for each of these groups.