Individuals with heart disease profit most from low-sodium diets but, on average, devour greater than twice the really useful each day sodium intake, in accordance with a study presented on the annual scientific session of the American College of Cardiology.
Sodium is an important nutrient, but an excessive amount of of it may possibly increase blood pressure, which damages blood vessels and forces the guts to work harder. Excess sodium also can cause the body to retain fluid, worsening conditions like heart failure. The present U.S. Dietary Guidelines from the U.S. Department of Agriculture recommend that the majority adults limit their sodium intake to lower than 2,300 mg/day, which is such as about 1 teaspoon of table salt. For individuals with heart problems, the limit is even lower at 1,500 mg/day, in accordance with guidelines really useful by the ACC and the American Heart Association.
This recent study found that in a sample of greater than 3,100 individuals with heart disease, 89% consumed greater than the really useful each day maximum of 1,500 mg of sodium, and study participants, on average, consumed greater than twice that quantity. Limiting sodium intake is a fundamental lifestyle change that has been shown to cut back the likelihood of subsequent major cardiovascular events, researchers said. Their findings highlight the challenges many individuals face in meeting really useful sodium limits, no matter other aspects equivalent to socioeconomic status.
Estimating the sodium content in a meal will be difficult. Food labels help estimate dietary sodium content by indicating the amounts of sodium in packaged foods. Nonetheless, adherence to a low-sodium food regimen stays difficult even for people with heart problems who’ve strong incentives to stick.”
Elsie Kodjoe, MD, MPH, an internal medicine resident at Piedmont Athens Regional Hospital in Athens, Georgia, and lead creator of the study
The study used data from patients diagnosed with a heart attack, stroke, heart failure, coronary artery disease or angina who participated within the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) between 2009 and 2018.
Researchers estimated sodium intake using questionnaires that asked participants to report every little thing they consumed inside 24 hours. In keeping with the outcomes, study participants with heart problems consumed a median of three,096 mg of sodium per day, barely lower than the national average of three,400 mg/day reported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“The relatively small difference in sodium intake suggests that folks with heart problems should not restricting their intake very much in comparison with the final population and are also consuming greater than twice the really useful amount,” Kodjoe said. “To make it easier for patients to stick to dietary guidelines, we’d like to search out more practical ways for most people to estimate dietary sodium levels or perhaps consider reducing the sodium content of the foods we devour directly on the source pull.”
The researchers also compared sodium intake amongst people in numerous socioeconomic groups, but found no significant differences between wealthier and fewer wealthy participants after accounting for age, gender, race and education level.
Individuals can take proactive steps to lower their sodium intake, Kodjoe said. This includes preparing more meals at home where you’ll be able to higher control sodium content and paying close attention to food labels, especially for foods with sodium content of 140 mg or less per serving. Researchers suggested that higher education in regards to the advantages of limiting sodium could also help motivate more people to follow recommendations.
“Heart problems is real and, in accordance with the World Health Organization, the leading reason for morbidity and mortality worldwide,” Kodjoe said. “Adhering to sodium guidelines is certainly one of the simpler strategies that individuals can easily adopt to cut back hospitalizations, healthcare costs, and morbidity and mortality related to heart problems.”
One limitation of the study is that sodium intake was estimated using food recall questionnaires slightly than 24-hour urinary sodium measurements, which is taken into account the gold standard method. NHANES has included 24-hour urinary sodium measurements in its data collection methods in recent survey cycles, so future studies using these data could provide more accurate assessment of sodium intake in individuals with heart problems.
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