A report from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) suggests that lowering sodium below 2,300 milligrams per day may be harmful to your health. <\/p>\n
While the organization, which is the health section of the non-profit organization the National Academy of Sciences, says that Americans are eating too much salt in their diets currently, their research has led them to conclude that lowering sodium too much may increase other adverse health risks. <\/p>\n
\"These new studies support previous findings that reducing sodium from very high intake levels to moderate levels improves health,\" committee chair Brian Strom, George S. Pepper Professor of Public Health and Preventive Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, said in a press release. \"But they also suggest that lowering sodium intake too much may actually increase a person's risk of some health problems.\" <\/p>\n
Currently, the average American Adult consumes 3,400 milligrams or more of sodium a day or about 1.5 teaspoons of salt. <\/p>\n
The current Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggests that people 14 to 50 should limit their salt intake to 2,300 milligrams daily. People 51 or older, African Americans and people with hypertension, diabetes or chronic kidney disease are recommended to keep their sodium levels below 1,500 milligrams in general. For reference, the American Heart Association (AHA) recommends that people stay below 1,500 milligrams per day to avoid heart disease and stroke risk, regardless of age, race or ethnicity. <\/p>\n
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High levels of sodium may be linked to one-third of Americans who have high blood pressure because the extra salt retains extra fluid in the body, making the heart work harder. High salt content has also been linked to increased risk for stroke, heart failure, osteoporosis, stomach cancer and kidney disease. <\/p>\n
While the IOM committee found that higher levels of sodium consumption increased heart disease risk, they said studies on health outcomes are inconsistent and insufficient when it comes to whether lowering salt intake to below 2,300 can decrease the risk of heart disease, stroke or all-cause mortality. <\/p>\n
In addition, low sodium intake was shown to have negative health affects for those with mid-to-late stage heart failure. There was also not that much evidence showing the effect of low salt consumption and other subgroups, including African Americans, people over 51 and those with health conditions like diabetes, kidney disease, hypertension or borderline hypertension. <\/p>\n
The IOM called for more research into low sodium levels between 1,500 to 2,300 milligrams per day and the various health consequences for all people. <\/p>\n
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Institute of Medicine: Lowering daily sodium intake below 2,300 may be bad<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A report from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) suggests that lowering sodium below 2,300 milligrams per day may be harmful to your health. While the organization, which is the health section of the non-profit organization the National Academy of Sciences, says that Americans are eating too much salt in their diets currently, their research has led them to conclude that lowering sodium too much may increase other adverse health risks. \"These new studies support previous findings that reducing sodium from very high intake levels to moderate levels improves health,\" committee chair Brian Strom, George S Continue reading