The Institute of Medicine has just questioned the benefits of drastically lowering salt intake. Although public health officials have been recommending low-sodium diets for years, the highly respected policy panel said there is not good evidence that cutting sodium consumption to less than 2,300 mg a day will prevent heart disease.
The committee acknowledged that many if not most Americans get too much salt in processed foods and restaurant meals. But trying to get everyone down to 1,500 mg of sodium daily, as the American Heart Association recommends, is out beyond the evidence, according to the IOM. The committee noted that some studies even suggest very low sodium diets may harm certain vulnerable patients such as those with diabetes, kidney disease or heart failure on aggressive therapy.
Some readers have found that low-sodium diets have disadvantages, such as a greater propensity to muscle cramps. People who have high blood pressure may find that cutting back on salt helps lower it, but other approaches may be equally helpful.
