Scan the barcode with Bite Insight, a free app for UK supermarket food, and see the salt in grams with a Sodium rating from Low to Very High. Add Hypertension to your profile and it also picks out salty ingredients like monosodium glutamate and soy sauce. Ratings are per 100g, so allow for how much you’ll eat.
Most people assume they can just stop adding salt. The reality is that about three quarters of the salt we eat is already in food when we buy it, often in things that don’t taste salty.
Hypertension is one of the most common conditions in the UK and a major risk factor for stroke, heart attack, and kidney disease. Many people do not know they have it until it is picked up at a routine check.
Three quarters of the salt we eat comes from processed and prepared foods, not from cooking or the table. Bread alone is one of the biggest contributors, alongside ready meals, cereals, and condiments.
The NHS recommends no more than 6g of salt a day for all adults. Most UK adults consume significantly more than this, often without realising it because so much salt is hidden in everyday foods.
The NHS says around three quarters of the salt we eat comes from packaged and everyday foods we buy. Bread and breakfast cereal are two of the big ones, and neither tastes very salty. You can let the app read the salt figure for you, or check the pack yourself.
Do it once when you sign up, or later in settings. The option is called Hypertension rather than high blood pressure. Once it’s set, Sodium is the first rating you see after a scan, with Saturated fat next to it. The Nutrition tab also gets stricter about salt.
Point your phone at the barcode and you get a Sodium rating from Low (green) to Very High (red). Despite the name, it’s worked out from the salt figure per 100g. Under Flagged ingredients you’ll see anything salty in the ingredients list, like salt itself, monosodium glutamate, sodium nitrite or stock cube.
Low
Moderate
High
Very HighRated from salt per 100g, so allow for your portion.
The NHS counts more than 1.5g of salt per 100g as high and 0.3g or less as low. Anything in between is medium. Use the per 100g column to compare products, then look at the portion, because adults should have no more than 6g of salt a day in total.
Most UK packs give salt, but Blood Pressure UK says some imported foods list sodium instead. 1g of sodium is the same as 2.5g of salt. So more than 0.6g of sodium per 100g works out at over 1.5g of salt, which counts as high.
Similar products can be very different. Blood Pressure UK gives the example of two loaves where one has 1g of salt per slice and the other has half that. If you eat bread, cereal or ham most days, they’re worth checking.
The NHS says soy sauce, gravy granules, ketchup and mustard can be high in salt. Cheese, pickles and cured meats are salty too. It suggests trying low salt soy sauce and stock cubes. Blood Pressure UK also says to look at where salt sits in the ingredients list. The closer to the top it is, the more there’s likely to be.
Low-sodium salt substitutes use potassium instead of sodium. Blood Pressure UK says they could help if you find cooking without salt hard. It also says that if you have kidney problems or diabetes, you should check with your doctor or nurse first, as they might not suit you. Bite Insight can’t tell you whether one is right for you.
The Sodium rating comes from one number: the salt figure per 100g on the label. It doesn’t look at the serving size, and it doesn’t convert anything from sodium. Low means 0.3g of salt or less per 100g, and Moderate goes up to 1.5g. Those are the same lines the NHS uses for low and high on food labels. Above that the app splits things in two. High runs up to 3g, and anything over 3g is Very High. The ingredient flags are a separate check. The app reads the ingredients list for salt, sodium-based additives and salty sauces, and marks each one it finds as harmful for Hypertension.
The Sodium and Saturated fat ratings and the salty ingredient flags are all free, with no scan limit. Compare Free and Bite Insight+
Bite Insight gives general food information, not medical advice. The Sodium rating is the app’s own guide, worked out from salt per 100g. If you’ve been told to cut down on salt, your GP, practice nurse or pharmacist can talk through what that means for you, especially if you take blood pressure medicine or have kidney problems.
Bite Insight does not give everyone the same results. Set your hypertension profile once and every scan is filtered through your specific needs.
Every scan shows a Sodium rating from Low to Very High, worked out from the salt figure per 100g. A Saturated fat rating sits beside it.
Set Hypertension as your condition and Bite Insight flags salty ingredients on every scan, such as salt, monosodium glutamate, sodium nitrite and soy sauce. The Nutrition tab shows salt in grams, and its salt traffic light turns red sooner.
Salt, MSG and sodium additives are already flagged for free. With Bite Insight+ you can add anything else you want to steer clear of, and it gets picked out on every scan.
The Sodium rating looks at the salt figure per 100g on each product and rates it from Low to Very High. It doesn’t keep count of how much salt you’ve had in a day.
No more squinting at the salt line in the supermarket aisle.
Point your camera at any food barcode or label. In the supermarket, at home, or eating out.
Bite Insight checks the product against your hypertension profile and surfaces what matters. The Sodium rating, salt in grams, any salty ingredients and anything on your own avoid list.
Build a diet that genuinely supports your blood pressure goals without having to become an expert in reading nutritional tables.
Real experience
“My doctor told me my blood pressure was high and to cut my salt intake. I had no idea how much salt was in the things I eat every day. Bite Insight opened my eyes. Even my breakfast cereal was high in sodium. I have made real changes because of it.”
The core tools for managing hypertension through diet are completely free. Sodium ratings, personalised warnings, and full nutritional breakdowns on every scan.
Everything you need to start managing your sodium intake with hypertension.
Sodium indicator Low, Moderate, High, Very High sodium
Personalised warnings based on your hypertension profile
Full nutrition breakdown including salt and sodium on every scan
200,000+ UK food and drink products including popular restaurants
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Extra tools for people who want complete control over their sodium intake.
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About using Bite Insight with hypertension.
Yes, Bite Insight is a free app that scans UK supermarket food and shows how much salt is in it, in grams, with a Sodium rating from Low to Very High. Add Hypertension to your health profile and it also flags salty ingredients like monosodium glutamate and soy sauce. The rating is per 100g, so check the pack for your portion size too. The NHS counts more than 1.5g of salt per 100g as high, and adults should have no more than 6g a day.
Multiply the sodium by 2.5. Blood Pressure UK says 1g of sodium is the same as 2.5g of salt. Most UK packs list salt, but some imported foods give sodium instead. As a guide, the NHS says more than 1.5g of salt per 100g (0.6g of sodium) is high, and 0.3g of salt or less (0.1g of sodium) is low. Bite Insight shows salt in grams only, so a sodium-only label needs the sum done by hand.
They can be. Low-sodium substitutes use potassium instead of sodium, and Blood Pressure UK says they could help if you find it hard to cook without salt. It also says that if you have kidney problems or diabetes, you should check with your doctor or nurse before using them, as they might not be suitable for you. The NHS suggests herbs, spices, black pepper, garlic, chilli or lemon juice as other ways to add flavour.
Yes. Add Hypertension to your health profile when you sign up, or later in settings. Every scan then shows a Sodium rating worked out from the salt per 100g, a Saturated fat rating, and any salty ingredients it finds, such as salt, monosodium glutamate or soy sauce.
It rates each product from the salt figure per 100g on the label. Low is 0.3g or less and Moderate goes up to 1.5g, the same lines the NHS uses on food labels. High runs up to 3g, and anything over that is Very High. It doesn’t look at the serving size, so allow for how much you’ll eat.
No. The Nutrition tab shows salt in grams only, and the app doesn’t convert between the two. Most UK labels give salt. If a pack only lists sodium, Blood Pressure UK says 1g of sodium is the same as 2.5g of salt, so multiply by 2.5.
Many are flagged already. With Hypertension in your profile, the free version picks out salt, monosodium glutamate (E621), sodium nitrite, sodium bicarbonate, sodium benzoate, soy sauce, stock cubes and other salty ingredients. If there’s something else you want to avoid, Bite Insight+ lets you add it to your own list, and it shows in an orange Flagged card whenever it turns up.
No. Bite Insight provides educational food insights to help you make more informed choices. It is not a substitute for advice from your GP or specialist. Always follow the dietary guidance of your healthcare team and use Bite Insight as a practical tool to support that at the point of purchase.
