Originally Published:20090401.
As if raising blood pressure weren't enough, salt may also make blood vessels stiffer, which is linked to a higher risk of heart disease.
Researchers put 29 overweight and obese people with normal blood pressure on a diet with a typical U.S. sodium intake (3,450 milligrams a day) or a lower-salt intake (1,150 mg a day).
After two weeks on the lower-salt diet, arteries were less stiff than after two weeks on the higher-sodium diet. (Blood pressure was also lower on the lower-salt diet.)
What to do: Cut salt by eating fewer packaged and restaurant foods, buying foods with less sodium, and cooking with less salt.
Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 89: 485, 2009.