Elevated sodium levels in the public drinking water as a contributor to elevated blood pressure levels in the community.

Further statistical analyses of previously reported preliminary data upheld results showing elevated levels of sodium in drinking water may exert an adverse health effect on normal, healthy persons. High school sophomores residing in a community with elevated levels of sodium in the drinking water (107 mg/l) exhibited a marked upward shift in blood pressure distribution patterns for systolic and diastolic pressure, when compared with students in an appropriately matched community (8 mg/l). Females exhibited a blood pressure distribution pattern characteristic of persons 10 yr older, while for males the upshift was similar to that of a group approximately 2 yr older.