A simple change in the type of salt we use in our foods could have huge health benefits around the world, research published this week suggests.
Australian and American scientists have calculated what could happen if we replaced standard table salt with a low-sodium version containing potassium under different scenarios. Up to three million deaths from cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease could potentially be avoided worldwide each year, they estimate. Many health groups have called for the widespread adoption of potassium-fortified salt, citing the known health risks of consuming too much sodium in our diet.
“The projected benefits are considerably greater than those expected from sodium reduction strategies alone, reflecting the combined effects of reduced sodium exposure and increased potassium intake,” the authors wrote in their paper published Wednesday in Nature Health.
Healthier salt
As delicious as a small pinch of table salt (sodium chloride) can be in a meal, one of its key ingredients has a real downside. Regularly consuming too much sodium can increase your risk of high blood pressure and other cardiovascular problems, including heart failure. And almost everyone consumes more sodium than they should. On average, Americans consume more than 3,300 milligrams of sodium per day, well above the recommended limit of 2,300 milligrams per day.
Efforts to convince people to directly cut salt and sodium from their diets have been unsuccessful, and people are not rushing to buy the lower-salt versions of popular foods. But in recent years, a new strategy has emerged. Potassium chloride is also an edible and cooking salt, and is now regularly used as a partial substitute for table salt.
Pure potassium chloride tends to have a bitter taste, but most people seem perfectly happy to consume versions that contain only a little potassium. A 2016 trial, for example, found that 80% of participants couldn’t tell the difference or even preferred a 30% potassium mixture over regular salt; more than 90% think the same thing for a mix of 15%. More importantly, studies have consistently shown that people who switch to potassium-fortified salt consume less sodium and suffer less from cardiovascular disease.
Given these findings, the World Health Organization last year endorsed the mass replacement of table salt with potassium-enriched salt (a 25% blend) for the general public as one of several ways to reduce sodium intake. For this latest study, the researchers wanted to model the likely impact of such a change.
They developed five different scenarios. The smallest change would only involve people being treated for hypertension and changing the salt they use at their own discretion, while the largest would replace all table salt in our food supply with a 25% potassium blend.
In the most radical scenario, where all salt is replaced, 2.96 million deaths and 10.17 million new cases of cardiovascular disease would likely be avoided each year, they found. And even in the least radical scenario, around half a million deaths would be avoided each year.
What could this mean
These figures are of course only projections. And the researchers point out that even if everyone agreed to start replacing our table salt, it would likely still take many years and a lot of effort to implement such a change, so these benefits would not be immediate.
It’s also important to note that potassium-fortified salt is also not without potential risks. People can have too much potassium in their system, a condition known as hyperkalemia, and certain medical conditions significantly increase the risk of hyperkalemia, namely chronic kidney disease. Thus, people with chronic kidney disease could potentially suffer from the widespread inclusion of these salts in the food supply. That said, even these populations could benefit overall from a change, as they also tend to develop cardiovascular problems. Researchers estimated that more than seven cardiovascular deaths could be avoided for every death that could occur in people with chronic kidney disease.
Plain old salt will likely remain on our tables for the foreseeable future. But if you’re worried about your own sodium intake and cardiovascular risk, switching to potassium-fortified salt seems like an easy trick. Who knows, you might just be one of the first pioneers.
Gn Health
