New research has found that people who add salt to their food face an increased risk of premature death.
A study of 500,000 people concluded that those who always added salt to their table were 28% more likely to die early than those who rarely or never did.
Typically, about three out of every 100 people aged 40 to 69 die prematurely in the general population.
But research published in the European Journal of Cardiology shows that one in 100 more people could die prematurely from eating too much salt.
Research shows that men in their 50s can lose about 2.28 years of their life expectancy by consuming too much salt.
Women of the same age can see their life expectancy reduced by about a year and a half.
Nearly 18,500 premature deaths (under 75 years of age) were recorded during the nine-year follow-up period after data were collected between 2006 and 2010.
The new study was led by Professor Lu Qi, of the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in New Orleans, USA.
Professor Qi, who has worked with colleagues from Harvard Medical School, said: “In the Western diet, adding salt to meals accounts for 6%-20% of total salt intake. and provide a unique way to assess the association between sodium intake and risk of death.”
Even a “modest reduction” in sodium intake can provide “significant health benefits,” says Professor Qi.
The study took into account factors that could have influenced the results including age, sex, race, deprivation status, body mass index (BMI), smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity and diet, along with health conditions like diabetes, cancer, and heart disease.
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The risk of premature death associated with adding salt was slightly reduced in those who ate more fruits and vegetables – however the difference was not “significant”.
Dr Qi said: “Since our study is the first to report an association between the addition of salt to food and mortality, further studies are needed to confirm the findings. before making recommendations.
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British Heart Foundation senior cardiologist Chloe MacArthur warned that “most of the salt” was already in products before they were bought – meaning people were consuming more than they realised – and urged Ministers seek to encourage the food industry to reduce salt.
“We need some salt in our diets, but eating too much can lead to high blood pressure, which in turn increases the risk of heart attack and stroke,” she said.
The National Food Strategy, a large review by businessman and restaurateur Henry Dimbleby, includes recommendations for salt and sugar taxes in an effort to reduce fat.
But it was ignored by Boris Johnson, who insisted it was not the time started a “new tax” on unhealthy food and declared people should just “eat less”.
