{"id":19058,"date":"2024-07-16T14:31:26","date_gmt":"2024-07-16T18:31:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foodmedcenter.org\/?p=19058"},"modified":"2024-07-16T14:31:28","modified_gmt":"2024-07-16T18:31:28","slug":"study-spotlight-take-away-with-chef-dr-mike-salt-the-heart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/foodmedcenter.org\/es_do\/study-spotlight-take-away-with-chef-dr-mike-salt-the-heart\/","title":{"rendered":"Study Spotlight Take-Away with Chef Dr. Mike: Salt & The Heart"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\u201cThere must be something strangely sacred in salt. It is in our tears and in the sea.\u201d<\/p>\n\u2015 Khalil Gibran<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

As cardiologists, one of the fundamental and immutable laws we were taught was that no patients required and benefited more from salt restriction than those with congestive heart failure (CHF). One of the hallmarks of CHF is changes to the neurohumoral system that lead to fluid retention, manifesting as edema in the peripheral extremities and shortness of breath due to fluid accumulation in the lungs. Sodium (salt) restriction was a cornerstone of treatment for decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Such dietary guidelines were extended beyond this perceived most vulnerable population to include not only those with hypertension (roughly 120 million in the US or about 47% of the adult population[1]<\/a>) but to the general public at large. Servicing this market, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) estimated at approximately 5% due to a continued emphasis on alleged health benefits, is big business, with a market worth around $7.5 billion worldwide in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And yet, for such a big investment, there is precious little data documenting positive outcomes from such an intervention, especially as the American Heart Association currently recommends no more than 1.5 g per day, and the World Health Organization recommends no more than 2 g of per day. These recommendations are driven in no small way by influential trials like the DASH-Sodium trial and others promoting a low-sodium dietary approach. However, other experts have countered that such recommendations are based \u201con the premise that reductions in sodium intake, irrespective of the levels, will lower blood pressure, and, in turn, reduce cardiovascular disease occurrence. These guidelines have been developed without effective interventions to achieve sustained low sodium intake in free-living individuals, without a feasible method to estimate sodium intake reliably in individuals, and without high-quality evidence that low sodium intake reduces cardiovascular events (compared with moderate intake)[2]<\/a>\u201d and that less restrictive guidelines, i.e., less than 5 g per day, are more reasonable. Currently, the average sodium consumption worldwide is between 2.3-4.6 g per day (1-2 teaspoons of salt).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This current review sought to examine the evidence behind recommending dietary sodium restriction in an extremely high-risk population consisting of those with congestive heart failure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Study:<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n