This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Adolescent sodium intake may not impact BP
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Consumption of 3,500 mg or more of daily sodium during adolescence does not appear to have an adverse effect on BP in young adulthood, according to results of a longitudinal study.
“In contrast, higher potassium concentration tended to be inversely associated with BP,” researchers wrote.
Researchers analyzed mean dietary sodium and potassium intake in 2,185 black and white girls aged 9 to 10 years at enrollment in the NHLBI’s Growth and Health Study, a prospective, longitudinal cohort study conducted at sites in California, Ohio and Washington, D.C. Dietary intake was evaluated using 3-day food records, and BP was measured annually. The initial evaluation occurred from March 1987 to February 1988, and patients were followed for up to 10 years.
The primary outcome was mean systolic and diastolic BP during the course of adolescence.
Participants were categorized according to sodium intake:
- Less than 2,500 mg/day (19.4%);
- 2,500 mg/day to less than 3,000 mg/day (29.5%);
- 3,000 mg/day to less than 4,000 mg/day (41.4%); and
- at least 4,000 mg/day (9.7%).
Similar categories were identified for daily potassium intake:
- less than 1,800 mg/day (36%);
- 1,800 mg/day to less than 2,100 mg/day (26.2%);
- 2,100 mg/day to less than 2,400 mg/day (18.8%); and
- at least 2,400 mg/day (19%).
Justin R. Buendia, BS, from the department of medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, and colleagues reported no significant association between increased sodium intake and systolic or diastolic BP during adolescence, with regard to absolute sodium intake and energy adjusted sodium residuals. Girls with sodium intake of at least 3,500 mg/day tended to have lower diastolic BP compared with those who consumed less than 2,500 mg/day (P = .18).
Girls with potassium intake of at least 2,400 mg/day had significantly lower systolic and diastolic BP in late adolescence compared with girls who consumed lower amounts of potassium (P = .02 for systolic BP; P = .05 for diastolic BP). Similar results were observed for both absolute and energy-adjusted intakes of potassium. However, adjustment for total energy intake eliminated the significance of the association between elevated potassium and systolic BP among black girls (P = .07).
An inverse association also was observed between systolic BP and the ratio of potassium to sodium among all participants (P = .04); however, the effects were weaker than those observed when assessing potassium intake alone. This association was no longer significant in race-stratified analyses.
“The data indicated no overall effect of sodium intake alone on BP, and thus do not support the call for a global reduction in sodium intake among children and adolescents,” Buendia and colleagues wrote. “This study emphasizes the need to develop methods for estimating salt sensitivity to be used in future studies of high-risk populations, and points to the potential health risks associated with the existing low dietary potassium intakes among U.S. children and adolescents.” – by Adam Taliercio
Editor's Note: This article was updated on May 4, 2015 to clarify the association between potassium intake and BP.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts