If someone with very high blood pressure eats almost no salt—less than a pinch a day—their blood pressure drops, and their heart and kidneys might even start healing.

Most people over 50 — even those with normal blood pressure or on blood pressure pills — see their blood pressure drop when they eat less salt.

If someone with very high blood pressure eats almost no salt, lots of carbs, and very little fat or protein for about three months, their blood pressure might drop by nearly 45 points — this diet could really help people with dangerously high blood pressure.

Eating less salt can help lower your blood pressure a little bit — on average, by about 3-4 points for the top number and 1-2 points for the bottom number, based on studies of many different people.

If you have high blood pressure and eat less salt—cutting from about 4.6 grams down to 1.5–2.4 grams a day—your blood pressure will likely go down a bit, especially if you're older, Black, or have kidney disease or metabolic syndrome.

If you cut down how much salt you eat from a lot to very little, your blood pressure will go down—by about 15 points for the top number and 10 points for the bottom number—and this works best if you already have high blood pressure.