Study Suggests Relationship Between Sodium Intake, Mortality

HealthDay News — Sodium intake has a direct relationship with total mortality, according to a report published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Nancy Cook, ScD, professor of epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, and colleagues reviewed Trials of Hypertension Prevention I and II. The first trial was conducted from 1987 to 1990 and the second from 1990 to 1995.

Dr Cook’s team found that over 24 years, people who consumed less than 2300 mg of sodium a day had a 25% lower mortality risk, compared with those who consumed 2300 to 3600 mg/day. The hazard ratio was found to be 1.12 per 1000 mg/24 hours (95% CI, 1.00-1.26; P =.05).

The authors of an accompanying editorial said this study and previous ones “support modest reductions in sodium intake among persons consuming high-sodium diets,” along with a healthy diet. The editorial authors also called for a randomized, controlled clinical trial of a low- vs moderate-intake salt diet to get a clearer idea of how salt consumption affects mortality risk.

References

1. Cook NR, Appel LJ, Whelton PK. Sodium intake and all-cause mortality over 20 years in the Trials of Hypertension Prevention. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2016;68(15):1609-1617. doi:10.1016/j.jacc.2016.07.745.
2. Mente A, O’Donnell MJ, Yusuf S. How Robust Is the Evidence for Recommending Very Low Salt Intake in Entire Populations? J Am Coll Cardiol. 2016;68(15):1618-1621. doi:10.1016/j.jacc.2016.08.008.