Refusal to the cook salt and its replacement of the food additive with a reduced sodium content and the addition of potassium prevents strokes, heart attacks and death. This conclusion came scientists from the Georgia Institute, who published the results of the study in the article published in the NEW England Journal of Medicine magazine.
The high level of sodium consumption and low potassium consumption are associated with high blood pressure and increased risk of stroke, heart disease and premature death. It is known that substitutes of salt reduce blood pressure, but their influence on heart disease, stroke and death still remained unclear.
21,000 adults who have suffered a stroke or having poorly controlled blood pressure, from 600 villages in rural areas of the five provinces of China took part in the study. Volunteers were provided with a sufficient amount of salt substitutes for cooking and storing food (about 20 grams per person). For almost five years of observations, more than three thousand people suffered a stroke. However, those who used salt substitutes, the risk of stroke decreased by 14 percent, cardiovascular events – by 13 percent, and premature death – by 12 percent.
Thus, annually due to the consumption of a substitute salt, it would be possible to prevent about 400 thousand premature deaths.