Too Much Salt Might Shorten Your Life
Sodium Intake and All-Cause Mortality Over 20 Years in the Trials of Hypertension Prevention.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
No protective effect at low sodium levels—even below 2,300 mg/day, lower intake meant lower death risk.
Most public health guidelines assume a 'sweet spot' for salt intake, fearing very low levels might be harmful. This study found no evidence of that.
Practical Takeaways
Replace one salty snack per day with a potassium-rich food like a banana, spinach salad, or sweet potato.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
No protective effect at low sodium levels—even below 2,300 mg/day, lower intake meant lower death risk.
Most public health guidelines assume a 'sweet spot' for salt intake, fearing very low levels might be harmful. This study found no evidence of that.
Practical Takeaways
Replace one salty snack per day with a potassium-rich food like a banana, spinach salad, or sweet potato.
Publication
Journal
Journal of the American College of Cardiology
Year
2016
Authors
N. Cook, L. Appel, P. Whelton
Related Content
Claims (6)
If you have pre-hypertension, having more sodium than potassium in your urine might mean you’re more likely to die from any cause — even if you’re not eating a ton of salt. It’s not just how much salt you eat, but the balance between salt and potassium that might matter more for living longer.
For people with slightly high blood pressure, eating more salt seems to raise the risk of dying earlier—even at very low salt levels below what’s usually considered healthy. There’s no sign that eating very little salt is safe or helpful.
People aged 30 to 54 who eat more salt over several years are 12% more likely to die from any cause for every extra 1,000 mg of salt per day—and eating very little salt doesn’t seem to help them live longer.
People with slightly high blood pressure who were randomly assigned to eat less salt were 15% less likely to die over 20 years, but the result wasn’t strong enough to say for sure it was because of the salt reduction — it might just be chance.
For people with slightly high blood pressure, eating more or less salt doesn’t seem to change their chance of dying, no matter how old they are, their gender, race, or whether they tried to lose weight — this pattern held true for over 20 years.