Abstract
Iodized salt is the best means of providing iodine to deficient populations, and it has been used successfully and safely for 70 years around the world. in China about 450 million people live in iodine-deficient areas. the prevalence of endemic goitre in 7- to 14-year-old children was estimated to be 20% (7 million cases). the Chinese government has undertaken to eliminate iodine-deficiency disorders by the year 2000, and the manufacture and use of iodized salt throughout China has been compulsory since early 1995. Currently, potassium iodate is used. National regulations require the iodine content of iodized salt to be no less than 30 mg/kg in the salt-processing plant, no less than 25 mg/kg in the market, and no less than 20 mg/kg in the household. According to sporadic sample checking, however, the iodine content of salt in the market and the household is far from satisfactory. the loss of iodine during cooking is as high as 50% to 70%. the major problems in the fortification of salt with iodine in China are the use of uniodized salt in remote areas, an unsatisfactory system for monitoring the quality of iodized salt, the lack of knowledge and skill among marketing staffs, the loss of iodine during storage and cooking, and the lack of nationwide systematic studies to monitor the effectiveness of iodized salt in the control of endemic goitre.