Definition
SALTBRIDGE serves as a bridging variable between two approaches to collecting information on the presence of iodized salt in the household. Initially, respondents were asked, "What type of salt is usually used for cooking in your household?" Respondents were also asked to show their salt package to the interviewer.
Beginning with Phase 4 of the standard DHS questionnaire, respondents were asked to provide the interviewer with a teaspoon of cooking salt, which the interviewer then tested. Iodine testing methods varied across phases and countries.
SALTBRIDGE combines information from the first approach of asking about cooking salt (in SALTIODIZE (HV222)) and the second approach of testing the cooking salt for iodine (in SALTEST3 (HV234)).
The information in SALTBRIDGE is taken from the household record, linked to the record of the woman respondent. This information applies to household residents, not temporary visitors, so researchers may wish to exclude visitors using the RESIDENT (V135) variable (with visitors coded "2").
See Comparability for more information.