A review of long-term effects of low sodium diet versus high sodium diet on blood pressure, renin, aldosterone, catecholamines, cholesterol and triglyceride
- College of Nursing, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida, USA
- Correspondence to Maureen McCormick Covelli
College of Nursing, University of Central Florida, 12201 Research Rarkway, Suite 300, Orlando, FL 32826, USA; Maureen.Covelli{at}ucf.edu
Implications for practice and research
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■ Low sodium diet in normotensive Caucasians showed less than 1% decrease in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and 3.5% decrease in hypertensive Caucasian populations.
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■ Further controlled studies are needed on the effect of sodium reduction among Blacks and Asians.
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■ Sodium reduction diet resulted in significant increase in lipids (plasma cholesterol and triglycerides) and hormones (renin, aldosterone, and catecholamine).
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■ Research on long-term hormonal and lipid effects of sodium restriction diets is needed.
Context
Low sodium diets have been a major hypertension prevention and treatment theme. Evidence supporting interventions of reduced sodium intake as a generalised hypertension prophylaxis initiative remains ambiguous.1 Although a diet high in sodium has …
