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Self-report of 24-h urine completeness compared with para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) recovery does not bias estimates of dietary salt intake in the UK

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 January 2026

Kerry S. Jones*
Affiliation:
Nutritional Biomarker Laboratory, MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
David Collins
Affiliation:
Nutrition Measurement Platform, MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
Sarah R. Meadows
Affiliation:
Nutritional Biomarker Laboratory, MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
Damon A. Parkington
Affiliation:
Nutritional Biomarker Laboratory, MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
Albert Koulman
Affiliation:
Nutritional Biomarker Laboratory, MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
Polly Page
Affiliation:
Nutrition Measurement Platform, MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
*
Corresponding author: Kerry Jones; Email: kerry.jones@mrc-epid.cam.ac.uk
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Abstract

The measurement of sodium excretion in 24-h urine samples is the recommended method to assess dietary salt intake to monitor salt-related public health policies. Ensuring complete collection of 24-h urine samples is important for the accurate assessment of salt intake. We compare the use of the objective biomarker, recovery of para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA), to self-reported 24-h urine completeness. Data collected from 868 men and women aged 19–64 years from the England Sodium Survey 2018/2019 (part of the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS)) were used to compare self-reported 24-h urine completeness based on a collection duration of 23–25 h, no missed urine collections/voids and a minimum urine volume of > 0·4 L against completeness based on the urinary recovery of oral doses of PABA. Two-thirds (69 %; 561/812) of participants who adhered to the PABA protocol provided a complete 24-h urine collection. Assessed by self-report, 71 % (619/868) of participants provided a complete 24-h urine collection. Sodium excretion was (geometric mean (interquartile range)) 127 (97–170) mmol/24 h with PABA and 126 (97–169) mmol/24 h by self-report; salt intake was 7·40 (5·65–9·94) g/d and 7·38 (4·53–8·83) g/d, respectively. The proportion of participants above the UK-recommended salt intake of 6 g/d was 70 % by both PABA and self-report. This study shows that the use of self-report of 24-h urine collection completeness provides an assessment of sodium excretion and dietary salt intake with the same accuracy as when PABA recovery is used to assess completeness.

Information

Type
Research Article
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2026. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Nutrition Society
Figure 0

Figure 1. Flow chart of participants with complete 24-h urine samples determined either by PABA recovery or participant claim and included in the analysis of salt intake. *Some participants were excluded for more than one reason, and hence the categories of exclusions sum to more than total exclusions. PABA, para-aminobenzoic acid.

Figure 1

Figure 2. Salt intake in males and females with 24-h completeness assessed by PABA recovery and self-reported claim (see text for details). Bars indicate geometric mean and error bars the interquartile range. PABA, para-aminobenzoic acid.

Figure 2

Table 1. Participant and urinary excretion data and salt intake by completion method of PABA recovery or claim (self-report of collection duration and missed collections)*

Figure 3

Table 2. Agreement between 24-h urine collection completeness by PABA recovery or claim

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