Comparison of participant and non-participant perceptions on healthy restaurant for sodium reduction: a qualitative study

Abstract

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES In the Republic of Korea, “Healthy Restaurant for Sodium Reduction (HRSR)” project have been designated as one of the representative policies for sodium intake reduction. However, as of 2021, only 879 restaurants, less than 0.1% of all restaurants, had been designated. Therefore, to increase the participation of restaurants in this policy, it is necessary to examine the in-depth perception and experience of participants and non-participants in the HRSR. MATERIALS/METHODS Two focus group discussions were conducted for HRSR project participants and non-participants. RESULTS A total of 260 semantic units were derived from the 2 groups. The units were further classified into 5 upper categories and 11 subcategories. All the study participants knew the importance of low sodium intake, but they had little information on HRSR project. Various attempts have been made to encourage low sodium practice in restaurants, and the participants reported that the amount of salt used in their restaurants currently is reduced compared to that used in the past. However, they were worried about customers’ complaints about the low sodium in their diet and the insignificant beneficent associated with the policy, which makes restaurant owners reluctant to participate in this policy. All the participants agreed on the urgent need for the improvement of public awareness of low-sodium diets and for substantive government support for HRSR. CONCLUSION This study concluded that strategies such as more active publicity for the practice of sodium reduction in restaurants, identification of approaches to dispel the perception that low-salt diet is not tasty, and development of plans to increase the sale of food in of HRSR, are needed.

The Quality of Menu Offerings in Independently Owned Restaurants in Baltimore, Maryland: Results from Mixed-Methods Formative Research for the FRESH Trial

“…Our findings align with a recent study in New York City, where Latin American restaurant owners identified healthy menu options as green salads, vegetarian alternatives, and seafood [23]. In contrast, several studies in Asian countries focused on cooking methods, such as sodium reduction in IORs, found that owners paid attention to the healthfulness of less strongly flavored foods rather than the overall composition of a meal [33,34].…”