This habit can actually increase the risk of cardiovascular health problems.
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA — Some people may be used to sprinkling garam addition to the food they are about to eat. Although it can make food taste better, this habit can actually increase the risk of cardiovascular health problems such as heart disease.
The relationship between the habit of adding salt to food and risk heart disease this was revealed in a recent study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. The study monitored the eating habits of 176,570 people living in the UK.
When the study began, all participants had no cardiovascular disease. But 11 years later, some cardiovascular problems were found in the participants who had the habit sprinkle salt addition to cooked food.
Among all participants, 9,963 cases of cardiovascular events were found. In addition, there were also 2,007 cases of stroke, 2,269 cases of heart failure, and 6,693 cases of ischemic heart disease or coronary heart disease.
Conversely, the research team also found that risk cardiovascular disease was lower in participants who rarely added extra salt to cooked food or in participants following a diet similar to the DASH diet. Meanwhile, the lowest risk of cardiovascular disease was found in participants who almost never added extra salt to their food while following a diet similar to the DASH diet.
The DASH diet is a dietary regimen designed to prevent or manage hypertension. The DASH diet focuses more on foods that are high in calcium, magnesium and potassium. This diet also minimizes intake of saturated fat, added sugar, and sodium. Refers to Mayo Clinicthe DASH diet limits sodium intake to around 2,300 mg per day.
Sodium as much as 2300 mg may seem like a lot. Even though in the form of salt, this amount is equivalent to one teaspoon of salt per day.
In addition, the research team revealed that the habit of adding salt to cooked food did not appear to be related to the incidence of stroke. However, this habit is closely related to various heart problems such as heart failure or ischemic heart disease.
“When patients combine diet DASH with a lower frequency of adding extra salt (to cooked food), they have the lowest risk of heart disease,” explained the researcher and professor at the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine at Tulane University as reported by Eat This Not ThatTuesday (10/1/2023).
From these findings, it is known that people do not need to completely eliminate salt when cooking food. What they need to do is to avoid the habit of adding extra salt to the food they are already cooking.
However, keep in mind that there are some foods that unknowingly contain high amounts of salt or sodium. Some of these foods are ultra-process prepared foods, ready-to-eat foods, and instant foods. Foods like this also still need to be limited in consumption so that daily salt intake does not become excessive.
Previously, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States (US) often advised people not to consume excess salt. The habit of consuming high amounts of salt can increase blood pressure. When hypertension occurs, the risk of a variety of more serious health problems such as stroke or heart disease will increase.
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