Denny's, famous for its Grand Slam breakfasts and other trademark menu items, is facing a class action lawsuit over allegedly concealing the amount of sodium in its food.
According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a consumer watchdog group that is championing the lawsuit, the amount of salt in a Denny's menu item greatly exceeds the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's daily recommended intake, which is 1500 mg. The CSPI allege that some meals at the national restaurant chain exceed 4000 mg of sodium.
High sodium intake is a major contributing factor to high blood pressure, which leads to heart disease. The 48-year-old lead plaintiff in the class action, Nick DeBenedetto, takes medication to control his blood pressure, and is careful of his salt intake at home.
According to the CSPI, however, some of DeBenedetto's favorite meals at Denny's, such as Moons Over My Hammy or the Super Bird turkey sandwich, contain far more than 1,500 mg of sodium. And that's without side dishes like soup or fried onion rings. According to the CSPI website, "Moons Over My Hammy, a ham, egg, and cheese sandwich, has 2,580 mg of sodium by itself", and "The Super Bird sandwich, served with regular French fries, has 2,610 mg of sodium—more than twice what someone with high blood pressure should consume in a day."
The purpose of the lawsuit is to compel Denny's to disclose on its menus the sodium content of its meals, and to place a notice on its menus warning about high sodium levels.
