After eating a high-salt diet for several weeks, older female rats with high blood pressure had similar blood pressure levels as those on a low-salt diet, around 178 mm Hg in both groups.

In older female rats with high blood pressure, starting blood pressure was similar whether they ate a normal low-salt diet or a high-salt diet, with numbers around 174 and 168 mm Hg.

Giving a common antioxidant drug called Tempol to older female rats with high blood pressure did not lower their blood pressure, whether they ate a low-salt or high-salt diet.

Higher dietary salt intake does not lead to sustained increases in blood pressure in healthy humans over months and years as the body self-regulates.