The low-sodium diet increases levels of renin and aldosterone, hormones which can increase blood pressure

Sprinkle away

I’ve always believed that the scare tactics over salt have been way overstated. So every time a new study comes out posing the same old questions, it makes me roll my eyes. And the latest one is no exception…

In a major review published in November in the American Journal of Hypertension, a prestigious group of Danish scientists acknowledges that, over the years, the studies of low-sodium diet vs. high-sodium diet have been conflicting in their results.

No newsflash there. But their research did turn up a couple of interesting findings…

They reviewed 167 gold-standard randomized studies involving a real mix of people… people with and without high blood pressure and multiple ethnic groups.

The verdict? Cutting back on sodium reduced blood pressure–but by very little. Blood pressure decreased 1 percent in people without high blood pressure, and 3.5 percent in those with high blood pressure.

However, people on the low-sodium diet had a 7 percent increase in triglycerides. And high triglyceride levels are a major risk factors for heart disease, heart attacks, and stroke.

But here’s the most interesting thing in the study: The low-sodium diet increased levels of two hormones–renin and aldosterone–which can increase blood pressure.

There’s your answer, folks.

If your food needs a little extra flavor, don’t fret. A sprinkle of salt won’t kill anybody.