Resumen de Salt in the Diet
Jill Jin, Deborah Tolmach Sugerman
Table salt is made up of a chemical compound called sodium chloride. The sodium portion of salt is responsible for its health concerns. High sodium intake is linked to high blood pressure, which is known to cause strokes and heart attacks. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans from the US government recommend that adults eat no more than 2300 milligrams (mg) of sodium a day—about 1 teaspoon of salt. Furthermore, for about half of all Americans—those aged 51 years or older, African Americans of any age, and people with high blood pressure, diabetes, or chronic kidney disease—the recommended maximum intake of sodium is 1500 mg a day. Currently, in spite of these recommendations, US adults consume an average of 3400 mg of sodium a day.
