Salt and Blood Pressure: Understanding the Connection

Salt is an essential dietary mineral for maintaining good health. However, when it is used in excess, salt can cause numerous health problems, including elevated blood pressure.

Hypertension

• Dietitians and doctors have noted for decades that increased salt intake has been linked to hypertension, or high blood pressure.

Heart Disease

• A large-scale study documented that people with high-normal blood pressure (between 120/80 mmHg and 139/89 mmHg) are 25 percent less likely to develop heart disease if they limit their intake of salt.

Heart-Related Complications

• People with high blood pressure who limit their intake of salt are 20 percent less likely to die from stroke, heart attack or cardiac arrest than hypertensive patients who do not limit their salt intake.

A Careful Balance

• People with hypertension should not avoid salt entirely. Iodized salt is necessary for preventing iodine deficiency, and moderate salt intake is considered to be healthy because it enables electrolyte balance.

Controversy

• Some experts believe that studies linking salt to hypertension are flawed. The German Nutrition Society has stated: "There has been no reliable study proving that the average salt intake in the healthy population contributes to high blood pressure."