Eating too little salt is also harmful to your health

Eating too little salt is also harmful to your health

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According to recent research, people whose diets contain enough salt will have healthier hearts and live longer than those who eat too little salt.

Eating too little salt is also harmful to your health

After following thousands of people for nearly four years, scientists have found that people who eat about 3-6 grams of salt per day have a lower risk of cardiovascular problems such as heart attacks. heart attack, stroke or heart failure than people who eat too little or too much salt.

“Our research explores optimal sodium levels for the human body on a global scale, and we have found that moderate salt intake is the way to stay healthy.” – statement by the head of the research team, professor Andrew Mente of McMaster University in Ontario, Canada.

According to this study, the average adult in the US currently consumes about 3.4 grams of table salt per day. However, the US government’s current dietary guidelines recommend that people minimize their daily salt intake. Accordingly, people aged 14 to 50 should limit their salt intake to about 2.3g/day, and people aged 51 and older, as well as groups of people at high risk of heart disease (people with heart disease). high blood pressure, diabetes or kidney disease) should reduce salt intake to 1.5g/day.

“Research has shown that current dietary guidelines need to be adjusted.” – Professor Mente said. This study is important because it was conducted on a large scale, and explores the long-term effects of salt on human health. Its results showed that very few Americans – just 4% of participants – had salt intake within the limits of government dietary guidelines.

Rethinking the role of salt

Eating too little salt is also harmful to your health

To obtain the above results, the research team evaluated the health of nearly 102,000 people aged 35 to 70 in 17 different countries, from developed countries to low-income countries. Most participants had no history of heart disease, so the results were representative of the majority of the world’s population, not just those at high risk of cardiovascular disease. A report on this issue has been published on the website The New England Journal of Medicine on August 14 last.

Each volunteer provided a sample of their urine each morning so the researchers could calculate each person’s 24-hour excretion of sodium and potassium, a reliable way to calculate levels of sodium and potassium. each person absorbs these two substances.

The results show that although people who consume too much salt are at higher risk of disease, there is also evidence that consuming too little salt also leads to health consequences. Several other recent studies have also shown a link between a low-salt diet and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Therefore, we will need more in-depth studies to explain why the increase in health problems goes hand in hand with the decrease in salt intake.

Data also shows that people whose diets contain more than 1.5 grams of potassium per day are less likely to have heart problems than those who eat less of this type of salt. Potassium has the ability to minimize the effect of sodium salt on blood pressure – Professor Mente said – and he also thinks that using more potassium salt can also create a reasonable diet, because in fruits and Vegetables contain a lot of these salts.

Regarding the practical application of this research, Professor Mente said that if you are eating too much sodium (more than 6g/day) or have high blood pressure, it is best to reduce the amount of salt in your food as well as limit it. Using processed foods such as salted meat, sausages or canned foods. But people who are consuming a moderate amount of salt (about 3-6g of salt/day) probably won’t need to cut back on salt in their meals, as even doing so could increase the risk of heart disease.

A large clinical trial is needed to accurately compare the health of a group of people who eat a low salt intake with a group that consumes just enough salt. But while waiting for the results, “To have a healthy heart and live a long life, instead of just focusing on nutrition, such as limiting salt intake, we should exercise diligently, eat moderately and not smoke.” – said Professor Mente.

According to Vnreview/Business Insider

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