Here is the press release from the AMA:
Study Investigates Association Between Intake of
Sodium and Potassium and Deaths Among U.S. Adults
CHICAGO – A high sodium intake, especially when combined with a low potassium intake, is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality, according to a report in the July 11 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
According to background information in the article, previous trials and studies have demonstrated apparent associations between increased blood pressure and high sodium intake or low potassium intake. “Recently, several studies suggested that the ratio of sodium to potassium intakes represented a more important risk factor for hypertension and CVD than each factor alone,” write the authors. “Examining the joint effects of sodium and potassium intakes on CVD risk is particularly important because most of the U.S. population consumes more sodium and less potassium daily than recommended.”
Quanhe Yang, Ph.D., from the Centers from Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, and colleagues used data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Linked Mortality File. They selected the data from 12,267 participants for analysis based on dietary information, demographic characteristics and health history. The data set also included mortality status matched to the participants. The researchers analyzed the data to determine consumption of sodium and potassium, as well as the sodium-potassium ratio, and to further determine the relationship between these variables and the risk of all-cause mortality as well as CVD and ischemic heart disease (IHD) mortality.
