People who add extra salt to their meals at the dinner table have a higher risk of premature death, a major new study has found.
Researchers from Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in New Orleans, US, analyzed data from 500,000 adults who are part of the UK Biobank.
They found that people who always added salt to their diet had a 28 percent higher risk of dying early than those who never added salt.
At age 50, men lose 1.5 years and women lose 2.28 years, compared to those who never, or rarely, added extra seasoning.
study, which was published in European Heart Journal On Monday, July 11, the participants’ eating habits were followed over a period of nine years starting between 2006 and 2010.
The researchers said the findings point to several public health implications.
Risk is reduced in people who consume large amounts of fruits and vegetables
(Getty Images/iStockPhoto)
“To my knowledge, our study is the first to assess the association between adding salt to foods and premature death,” said lead author Professor Lu Qi.
“Adding salt to foods at the table is a common eating behavior that is directly related to a person’s long-term preference for salty-tasting foods and habitual salt intake.
“In the Western diet, adding table salt reduces total salt intake by 6–20% and provides a unique way of evaluating the association between habitual sodium intake and risk of death.”
Qi said the study provides novel evidence that modifying individual eating habits, such as reducing sodium intake, “is likely to result in substantial health benefits”.
While adding salt to your diet is associated with a higher risk of premature death, researchers found that the risk was slightly reduced in people who consumed large amounts of fruits and vegetables.
“We were not surprised by this finding because fruits and vegetables are major sources of potassium, which have protective effects and are associated with a reduced risk of premature death,” Qi said.
“Since our study is the first to report an association between adding salt to foods and mortality, further studies are needed to validate the findings before making recommendations.”
While the US-based study surveyed a large amount of people, it had some limitations.
Participation in the UK Biobank is voluntary and therefore results may not be representative of the general population.
Additionally, the study did not ask participants to specify how much salt they were adding to their well.
Professor Annika Rosengren, a senior medical researcher at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden who was not involved in the study, said the effect of reducing salt consumption remains controversial.
“Given the various indications that very low sodium intake may not be beneficial or even harmful, it is important to differentiate between recommendations on an individual basis and actions at the population level,” Rosengren said.
“The clear and evidence-based strategy with regard to preventing cardiovascular disease in individuals is the early detection and treatment of hypertension, including lifestyle modification, while socially-salt-reduction strategies will reduce population mean blood pressure levels, As a result, fewer people will develop high blood pressure, need treatment, and get sick.”
The NHS recommends that adults eat no more than 6 grams of salt per day – the equivalent of about one teaspoon.