I never understand why people don't talk about banning the general usage of sugar, probably has far worse effects on societal systems than smoking does. (attention, fatness, hormonal imbalances)
Here is the US Health Secretary talking about it: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/22/rfk-jr-sugar...
I think it's the hard work arounds that will eventually break it. Like we're already growing strawberries that are naturally sweet, in the future maybe our bread will be made of wheat that has "natural" sugars in it or something. But I feel that for that to happen the "no added sugars" labeling would have to be exceptionally effective.
What if you add it to a soft drink? Or a ready meal? What about using it instead of fruit in a ready meal?
Much better to make more effort in schools to teach people how to cook good food (including enough fat and salt that it's actually tasty). Plus maybe change some relative prices so that they eat less sugar on average.
For salt, I disagree. Normal humans don't need to add salt to a varied diet. Table salt is completely unneeded but most think food tastes bland without salt because their taste buds have adjusted to it.
Your approach strikes me as the sort of dietary absolutism that is actively damaging to public health.
The salt thing is a case in point. Perhaps it's theoretically true that we could all learn to enjoy our food with less salt. But this would be very hard, and I'm not convinced that an ordinary amount of salt is very damaging to health (except in the case of some specific health conditions that most people don't have).
But many schools in the UK take your approach: kids get taught to cook meals with no added salt (and also the bare minimum of fat). Everything they make therefore tastes bland and tedious.
The result? These kids don't learn to love cooking or home-cooked food. Instead, they learn that the way you eat food that tastes good is to order it from restaurants and fast food outlets. This is much more expensive and much less healthy than cooking at home using a reasonable amount of salt and fat, and it's a public health disaster.
Sugar and salt are inexpensive ingredients that make highly processed foods more appealing, often leading to over-consumption. This not only displaces more nutritious options but also contributes to their negative reputation and, over time, they have come to be seen as unhealthy in any amount. Sugar, in particular, is sometimes portrayed almost as a poison.
Over-salting is one of the causes of the most common way of dying. I couldn't say for sure because I don't go to restaurants a lot anymore, but it's not rare to see people salting their dishes without even tasting them beforehand.
Drinking two liters of coke or two liters of orange juice will equally hurt you.
Salt was extremely valuable and thought after before it was broadly available. People always liked salt because it makes things taste better. The amount is a matter of habit and too much salt is unhealthy, but the general principle stands: a little salt is and always was tasty and healthy.
Sure it makes everything tastier, but salt added to every dish is a danger to your health. Where I live you would get almost all your daily recommended intake by your usual portion of bread.
So, yes, salting your lunch or dinner will result in excess salt.