Research

Mixed

Long-term adherence to a sodium reduction intervention significantly reduces the risk of major cardiovascular events (myocardial infarction, stroke, revascularization, or cardiovascular death) in adults with prehypertension.

If you have high-normal blood pressure, reducing your sodium intake through counseling and dietary changes can significantly lower your risk of heart attacks, strokes, and cardiovascular death over the next 10-15 years. Focus on identifying sodium sources and preparing lower-sodium meals; your taste buds will likely adapt, making it easier to maintain.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Risk of a cardiovascular event was 25% lower among those in the intervention group (relative risk 0.75, 95% confidence interval 0.57 to 0.99, P=0.04)... Sodium reduction, previously shown to lower blood pressure, may also reduce long term risk of cardiovascular events.
Nancy R. Cook et al. · BMJ · 2007

Why this rating

Randomized controlled trials with long-term observational follow-up (10-15 years) provide strong evidence, though the follow-up was observational.

Source

Long term effects of dietary sodium reduction on cardiovascular disease outcomes: observational follow-up of the trials of hypertension prevention (TOHP)

Nancy R. Cook et al. · BMJ · 2007

DOI 10.1136/bmj.39147.604896.55

rct · n=3126Cited 1,182×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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