Background

For over 4 decades, both scientific and medical communities have recommended that Americans reduce their salt intake. This guidance is rooted in countless scientific reports documenting that excessive sodium intake can predispose some individuals to hypertension, a major risk factor for development of heart disease and stroke. Despite numerous federal and private initiatives to lower salt intake in the US population via educational campaigns, behavior modification strategies, and voluntary sodium reduction initiatives by food manufacturing and food service industries, nationally representative data point to considerable increases in sodium intake over the last 30 y. Indeed, sodium consumption averages in excess of 3400 mg/d (∼ 1.5 teaspoons of table salt), an amount that substantially exceeds the maximum intake level (2300 mg/d) recommended by both the Institute of Medicine and the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.