New York, NY —

New York City health officials have battled trans fats, high-calorie fast food, and now they're taking on salt. The Bloomberg Administration released draft guidelines recommending a maximum amount of sodium that should be in a wide variety of manufactured and packaged foods, aiming to help reduce the average New Yorker's salt intake by 20 percent in five years.

Mark Kurlansky, author of the book "Salt: A World History" joined WNYC's Amy Eddings to discuss Mayor Bloomberg's latest health crusade, the history of salt, and to answer the question once and for all, is salt really bad for you.

There is more on this story from WNYC's health reporter Fred Mogul here.