Controversy Over Salt in Food

Archive Report

Sodium and Hypertension

Health Dangers of Excessive Salt Intake

Salt is a big issue in Washington these days. That's salt with a small “s,” the kind you sprinkle on food. Salt is the second leading food additive (behind sugar), and Americans consume a lot of it, an average of two to five teaspoons per day. It is the sodium content of salt that concerns health officials.1 Faced with mounting evidence linking excessive sodium consumption to hypertension (high blood pressure), the government has begun a campaign to get Americans to reduce their salt intake.

“During roughly the last 10 years there has been a gradual development of what I would call a national medical and biological consensus about the association between sodium and blood pressure,” said Dr. Allan ...

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