Spices and Herbs Help Lower Sodium Intake, Risk of Hypertension

For most of us, reducing our salt consumption could also help reduce the risk of such health-related issues as high blood pressure. However, making diet changes can be difficult for anyone. And salt? Just like sugar, there's typically a ton of it in all processed foods.

For a two-part study, researchers examined the effects of consuming different levels of salt and how they affect overall health. The first part of the study included 55 participants who were given a low-sodium diet to follow for four weeks. This new diet reduced sodium intake from 3,450 mg a day to 1,656 mg per day. Close to 60 percent of the participants had hypertension, while another 18 percent had diabetes and were overweight.  

The second phase of the study included a 20-week behavioral intervention program that taught participants how to replace salt with spices and herbs. The other half of the participants were instructed to reduce their sodium intake. Results showed that both groups ended up eating more sodium during the second half of the study. Yet the intervention group consumed an average of 966 mg per day less salt than the control groups.

"People in the intervention group learned problem-solving strategies, use of herbs and spices in recipes, how culture influences spice choices, how to monitor diet, overcoming the barriers to making dietary changes, how to choose and order foods when eating out and how to make low-sodium intake permanent," said Cheryl A. M. Anderson, Ph.D., M.P.H., lead author of the study and associate professor in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine at the University of California San Diego. "Salt is abundant in the food supply and the average sodium level for Americans is very high - much higher than what is recommended for healthy living. We studied the use of a behavioral intervention where people learn how to use spices and herbs and less salt in their daily lives."

What do you think?

More information regarding the study can be found via the American Heart Association's Epidemiology and Prevention Nutrition, Physical Activity & Metabolism Scientific Sessions 2014.