'Salt Sensor' to Help Koreans Eat Healthier

In an effort to reduce salt consumption, the Rural Development Administration has developed a portable sensor that measures the amount of salt in soup, it said Tuesday, though whether significant numbers of Koreans will soon be dipping one into their food in restaurants up and down the nation remains to be seen.

The device is about the size of a thermometer and displays the concentration of salt as a change in an electric current. It takes about three seconds. "The sensor was able to measure salt concentration within a margin of error of 0.1 percent in tests for different kinds of soups," an RDA official said.

"The sensor will be tested at hospitals providing low-salt diet for patients with high blood pressure and similar conditions from next month, and according to test results we will work to commercialize it within this year," the official said. "The price will be around W25,000 (US$1=W1,246) per unit."

Koreans eat 13.4 g of sodium on average a day, three times the 5 g limit recommended by the World Health Organization.