FDA Sodium Guidance and Healthy Meals 

for Older Adults

Reducing Sodium Intake Can Save Lives 

National evaluations of the Older Americans Act (OAA) Title III-C Senior Nutrition 

Program (SNP) show the program promotes older adults’ access to nutritious meals, 

enables social contact, and reduces the likelihood of facing adverse health events. 

This tip sheet provides information on a national sodium reduction initiative and how 

it can assist the aging network in meeting OAA Title III-C Nutrition Services 

requirements.

Sodium Affects OAA Participants’ Health

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that over 74% of 

Americans 60 and older have hypertension.1 Excess sodium intake is linked with 

hypertension, a leading cause of heart disease and stroke. To promote health and 

well-being in SNP participants, it is important to manage the sodium content of OAA 

SNP meals. 

According to the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs), most Americans 

consume about 3,400 mg of sodium daily.2 This is 50% higher than the DGA 

recommendation of < 2,300 mg daily for people 14 and older. Sodium is an essential 

nutrient that can improve food flavor, texture, and help prevent microbial growth. 

Most sodium in the U.S. diet comes from commercially processed foods and foods 

prepared in restaurants. 

Recent Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidance on sodium includes dietary 

considerations for older adults since blood pressure tends to increase with age. This 

signals an understanding by the FDA that older Americans can benefit from 

reductions of sodium content in commercially packaged, processed, and prepared 

foods from grocery stores, restaurants, and community meal programs.
Federal Guidelines

The OAA (Section 339) requires that all OAA-funded meals adhere to current DGAs, 

provide at least one third of the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI), meet state and local 

food safety and sanitation requirements, and be appealing to older adults. Program

evaluations of the OAA SNP show the program benefits older Americans’ health by

preventing costly medical interventions.

3

In 2021, the FDA issued “Guidance for Industry: Voluntary Sodium Reduction Goals.”4

This guidance document established voluntary targets for reduced sodium content 

in select commercially processed, packaged, and prepared foods due to excess 

sodium in the food supply and excess sodium intake by Americans. This FDA 

guidance aims to:

1. Support increased food choice for consumers that is consistent with DGA

recommendations by encouraging food reformulation and new product 

development.

2. Support the DGAs and help Americans reduce average sodium intake through 

the voluntary reduction of sodium in food manufacturing and food service 

industries by 2024. 

3. Focus on the total amount of sodium in a given food as opposed to individual 

sodium-containing ingredients.

4. Provide uniform measures (mg of sodium per 100 g of food) for voluntary 

sodium reduction in sixteen categories of common foods that have the 

biggest impact on sodium intake.

5. Support and extend industry’s voluntary efforts to reduce sodium across the 

range of commercially processed, packaged, and prepared foods.

Benefits of the FDA Guidance include:

• Gradual reduction of sodium over time allows manufacturers a period for 

product reformulation and for consumer taste preferences and expectations 

to adjust.

• An overall reduction of sodium in the food supply will provide a supportive 

environment for consumers to reach sodium intake levels recommended by 

the DGAs.

• Decreasing sodium intake is expected to reduce the rate of hypertension, 

cardiovascular events, premature death, and health care costs as indicated in 

other countries implementing sodium reduction strategies.
Considerations for OAA Title III-C Nutrition Service Providers

• The FDA Guidance supports meeting the OAA Title III-C SNP requirements:

o DRI nutrient requirements and current DGA recommendations.

o Meals that are appealing to older adults.

• The FDA Guidance supports the OAA Title III-C SNP goals:

o By assisting older adults in gaining access to nutrition and other 

disease prevention and health promotion services.

o To delay the onset of adverse health conditions resulting from poor 

nutritional health or sedentary behavior.

• Provide nutrition education that shows program participants how to adopt 

healthy and flavorful lower sodium foods into their diet. 

• Develop food specifications that include criteria for reduced sodium content.

• Prepare written agreements for food or meal vendors that specify sodium 

reduction in prepared foods and the use of low and no sodium seasonings. 

• Conduct monitoring and evaluation practices to track progress in lowering 

sodium intake.

Sodium Reduction Resources

• Guide to SUA Sodium Policies and Guidance: Examples of state policies and 

materials related to sodium content of meals.

• Building Emergency Shelf-Stable Meals: Factors and tips for creating shelf 

stable emergency meals.

• Create a Flavor Station: Information on creating a flavor station including 

options for low sodium seasonings.

• Managing Sodium in Meals and Menus: How to reduce sodium when buying 

food, in menu planning and meal production. Includes menu labeling 

examples.

• Salt and Sodium: Defines salt versus sodium and how to calculate added 

sodium in recipes. 

• Sodium Reduction Resources: Resources used by schools and nutrition 

programs to lower sodium in meals. 

References

Ostchega Y, Fryar CD, Nwankwo T, Nguyen DT. Hypertension prevalence among 

adults aged 18 and over: United States, 2017–2018. NCHS Data Brief, no 364. Hyattsville, 

MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2020.
U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 

Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. 9th Edition. December 2020. Available 

at DietaryGuidelines.gov.

Administration for Community Living (2022). Overview of Older Americans Act Title III, 

VI, and VII Programs: 2020 Summary of Highlights and Accomplishments. U.S. 

Department of Health and Human Services. 

Food and Drug Administration. (2021). Voluntary Sodium Reduction Goals: Target 

Mean and Upper Bound Concentrations for Sodium in Commercially Processed, 

Packaged, and Prepared Foods: Guidance for Industry.