Ekmekcioglu Cem, Blasche Gerhard, Dorner Thomas E
Institute of Environmental Health, Centre for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Austria.
Forsch Komplementmed. 2013;20(6):454-60. doi: 10.1159/000357413. Epub 2013 Dec 16.
Humans evolved on potassium-rich diets containing only small amounts of sodium. Nowadays, sodium intake considerably exceeds potassium intake. However, from the evolutionary point of view we are not accustomed to such high salt (sodium chloride) ingestion. The consequences of a high dietary salt intake are primarily elevated blood pressure with a higher risk for cardiovascular diseases, but also a higher probability of developing kidney diseases and stomach cancer. High sodium consumption is favored by an extremely 'salty' environment, where palatable salty food is frequently available promoting a dietary salt overload of the human body. To efficiently achieve a consistent reduction in dietary salt intake, sodium content of food should be reduced and eating behavior modified. This review covers both of these aspects, including the reasons why we are not 'programmed' to cope with high salt loads, the clinical consequences of a high salt consumption and the possibilities of reducing dietary salt intake and getting rid of the 'salty' environment.
人类在富含钾且仅含有少量钠的饮食中进化。如今，钠的摄入量大大超过了钾的摄入量。然而，从进化的角度来看，我们并不习惯如此高的盐（氯化钠）摄入。高盐饮食的后果主要是血压升高，心血管疾病风险增加，同时患肾脏疾病和胃癌的可能性也更高。在极端“咸”的环境中，人们容易摄入大量钠，在这种环境中，美味的咸食随处可得，导致人体饮食盐分过量。为了有效持续减少饮食中的盐摄入量，应降低食物中的钠含量并改变饮食习惯。这篇综述涵盖了这两个方面，包括我们为何没有“设定程序”来应对高盐负荷的原因、高盐摄入的临床后果，以及减少饮食盐摄入量和摆脱“咸”环境的可能性。
