Tributes have flooded in for a man who was an inspiration for health campaigners and a successful thorn in the side of the food industry for many years.
Professor Graham MacGregor died peacefully with his family around him on Monday.
The man who in 1996 founded Consensus Action on Salt & Health and in 2005, the international network World Action on Salt & Health was widely admired – even by many who were on the receiving end of his wicked wit as he took the industry to task over levels of salt and sugar in products.
Educated at Cambridge University and trained in medicine and nephrology at St Thomas’ and then Charing Cross Hospitals, MacGregor went on to become professor of cardiovascular medicine at St George’s, University of London, before taking up his position as professor of cardiovascular medicine at the Wolfson Institute of Population Health at Queen Mary, University of London.
Supporters credit him as being a major influence on the world-leading salt reduction programme in the UK, although he was a fierce critics of later efforts, including the Responsibility Deal launched by Andrew Lansley under the Conservative and Lib Dem coalition, which he famously branded “rubbish” and accused of costing 6,000 lives.
In 2014 he founded Action on Sugar and was a prominent voice in the debate surrounding new government recommendations on sugar intake, which sparked a major round of reformulation and reduced portion size commitments by food brands.
Before that, In 2001, MacGregor set up the Blood Pressure Association, now BPUK, He was for many years chair of the trustees, helping spearhead its ‘Know Your Numbers’ campaign.
A spokesman for Action on Salt said: “Graham was known for his uncompromising style, formidable energy and unwavering commitment to improving public health on a global scale.
“He was a prolific researcher, authoring hundreds of scientific papers as well as the odd low salt-cookbook.
“The legacy of Graham MacGregor has been transformative and will be enduring. His worked has shaped our understanding of the causes of high blood pressure, but perhaps more importantly it has shaped public health policy, food and drink industry practice and ultimately the health of millions.”
Former PHE chief nutritionist Alison Tedstone paid tribute to MacGregor, saying: “His work on salt reduction will have saved many lives.
“I first met him about 25 years ago when he was tenaciously pushing the government to demand salt reduction by the food industry. He continued to push successive governments to do more and to set ever more stringent targets. The approach he spearheaded set a template for WHO and other countries. Achieving an 11% reduction in salt intakes in the UK was amazing.
“He was a much-needed thorn in the side of the civil service and government. Without his tenacity, passion and sense of what was right, much less would have happened.”
Katharine Jenner, director of the Obesity Health Alliance and a former AOS colleague, said: “I had the privilege of working with Professor Graham MacGregor – always Prof to me – for 15 years.
“He was a constant source of both inspiration and provocation. He never let us stay still. As soon as we finished one project, rather than basking in our success, the meeting the next morning would always begin with: ‘What’s next?’
“Prof was the most passionate advocate for improving our nation’s health that I have ever had the fortune to meet.
“His words still ring in my ears whenever I showed him a piece of work: One. Show me the evidence. Two. Check it again. Three. Make it stronger!”
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