It is well known that the intake of a large amount of salt increases blood pressure. After all, who can eat french fries without the addition of salt, which elevates their taste?
Although salt generally adds flavor to foods, reducing salt on a daily basis can prove to be a beneficial move to shield the heart, and thus better regulate blood pressure.
According to research presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2023 and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), consumers are going to see a drop in blood pressure levels if they decide to eat one less teaspoon of salt. per day, regardless of whether they are on antihypertensive treatment.
According to Deepak Gupta, Associate Professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (USA), the reduction in systolic pressure (major) of about six units (millimeters of mercury/mm Hg) that participants achieved through salt restriction was similar to the effects of a drug of choice for lowering hypertension.
Norrina Allen, professor of Preventive Medicine at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, said that blood pressure was “regulated” in 70-75% of participants.
Salt is useful in several functions of the body, however, excessive consumption can lead to heart disease.
Thus, this particular study, which is considered one of the largest, aimed to show that a daily intake of 1,500 mg of salt (one teaspoon) recommended by the American Heart Association can be limited, in order to prevent risks to the cardiovascular system.
213 volunteers aged 50-70 from the cities of Birmingham, Alabama and Chicago participated in the research. The participants were then randomly divided into two groups, following separate eating habits for a week. Thus, one group followed a diet with a high sodium content (additional 2,200 mg per day) and the second, with a low content (500 mg total per day).
After the week was over, the roles were reversed. To collect the data, the researchers recorded the blood pressure of the participants, while a 24-hour urine collection was also done, before each visit to them, as part of the study.
As the research found, the low-sodium diet was associated with a reduction in “big” blood pressure in 72% of participants by 7 to 8 points compared to the high-salt diet, and by 6 points compared to the usual nutrition of the participants.
“Blood pressure reduction from low sodium intake was seen in the majority of participants, including those with normotensive, high blood pressure, and controlled or uncontrolled hypertension. Just as any form of physical activity is better than inactivity, reducing sodium in our diet is probably better for blood pressure,” pointed out Dr. Gupta.
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