With so much focus being placed on added sugars in our diets, we should make sure not to lose sight of the potential health woes of excessive sodium intake.
A research paper in The New England Journal of Medicine found the risk of cardiovascular events like heart attack in 10,709 adults increased by 18% for each 1,000 milligram daily increase in sodium excretion. The study authors say that analyzing 24-hour urinary excretion over multiple days is a more accurate method of assessing sodium intake than relying on self-reported consumption.
On the flipside, the risk decreased 18% with every 1,000 mg daily increase in potassium excretion. The findings also showed that a higher sodium-to-potassium ratio was linked with greater cardiovascular risk. So fewer salty packaged foods and fast foods and more potassium-rich edibles like legumes, fruits and veggies seems like a prescription for better heart health.
See also: Does Sodium Intake Concern You?
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