Excess Sodium Linked To Cardiovascular Death

Excess daily sodium intake contributes to 1.65 million global cardiovascular deaths annually, according to a recent study.

Researchers defined anything over the World Health Organization (WHO)-recommended 2.0 g of daily dietary sodium as excess.

For the study, researchers evaluated sodium intake and other nutritional data from 205 surveys in various countries throughout the world. Sodium intake was calculated by country, sex, and age.
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Through additional meta-analyses (including age and race), investigators examined the effects of sodium in blood pressure levels, and blood pressure’s influence on cardiovascular disease.

The results showed a 2010 global sodium intake of 3.95 g daily, almost double the WHO recommendation. In the United States, the mean sodium intake was 80% greater than the recommended amount and resulted in 58,000 cardiovascular deaths.

Investigators noted that all global regions were above the WHO recommendations, including 2.18 g daily in sub-Saharan Africa and 5.51g daily in Central Asia.

Researchers further found that by lowering sodium consumption, individuals lowered blood pressure especially in blacks, the elderly, and those with pre-existing high-blood pressure.

“These 1.65 million deaths represent nearly 1 in 10 of all deaths from cardiovascular causes worldwide.  No world region and few countries were spared,” said Dariush Mozaffarian, MD, the study’s lead researchers and dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.

“These new findings inform the need for strong policies to reduce dietary sodium in the United States and across the world,” he said.

The complete study is published in the August issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

-Michelle Canales

References:

Mozaffarian D, Fahimi S, Gitanjali M, et al. Global sodium consumption and death from cardiovascular causes. NEJM. 2014 August [epub ahead of print] doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1304127

Tufts University. Estimated 1.65 million global cardiovascular deaths each year linked to high sodium consumption. August 13, 2014. https://now.tufts.edu/news-releases/estimated-165-million-global-cardiovascular-deaths-each-year-linked-high-sodium. Accessed August 18, 2014.