A study released on-line this week in The Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology indicates that physiology, not public policy, will determine a human’s daily sodium intake. This research likely represents a important step forward in light of past and current efforts by government agencies and government funded organizations to set progressively restrictive guidelines for salt intake among U.S. citizens.
The study, Can Dietary Sodium Intake be Modified by Public Policy? (David A. McCarron, Joel C. Geerling, Alexandra G. Kazaks, Judith S. Stern), analyzed existing research to determine whether sodium or salt intake follows a pattern consistent with a range set by the brain to protect normal function of organs such the heart and kidney. The analysis is based upon 19,151 subjects studied in 62 previously published surveys and reflects the differing ‘food environments’ of 33 countries. The data reported documents that humans have a habitual sodium intake in the range of 2800 to 4600 mg/day with an average of 3600 mg/day. Currently, the U.S. consumes an average of about 3,500 mg/day.
The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee of the U.S. Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture considers 2,300 mg/day sodium to be a healthy maximum almost 20% lower than the minimum intake observed in the 19,000-plus subjects reported in this first-time analysis. In spite of that reality, the Committee is in the midst of a review to determine whether that recommendation should be lowered even further. An Institute of Medicine Committee is also considering a strategy to reduce dietary sodium.
The Committees should heed this study as they consider wasting more time and energy on policies which are unlikely to make American citizens any healthier. Time spent on draconian recommendations on a single ingredient would be better spent encouraging a healthful overall diet rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains. The Mediterranean diet is high in salt, yet the Mediterranean people are known for excellent cardiovascular health. A healthful overall diet, not a fixation on any single ingredient, is one of the secrets to maintaining good health.
See the Salt Institute's news release (pdf 29.80 kB) .
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