Doctors for years have warned that high salt intake increases the risk of high blood pressure and other heart problems, but recent studies have begun to debunk that notion.
Although lowering salt intake is known to reduce blood pressure, research has yet to show whether that translates into better overall heart health in the wider population. A large review of studies released earlier this month suggested cutting salt may not improve the health of the general population.
In the latest entry in the debate, researchers at McMaster University in Canada found people who consumed a moderate amount of salt had the lowest risk of heart problems, while people who had high-salt diets had an increased risk of stroke, heart attack and other cardiovascular events.
Those in the study with low-salt diets had a higher risk of death from heart disease and an increased risk of being hospitalized for heart failure, the team reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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