So should you eat salt, or not eat salt?
A combination of scientific studies and guidelines from the U.S. government is enough to confuse everyone — some scientists think that the reducing the overall rate of consumption in the United States, and some think that it won’t do a lick of good.
The FDA recently came out with new guidelines urging people to cut down on their salt intake, urging people to consume no more than 2,300 milligrams of salt per day. The American Heart Association recommends at least 1,500 milligrams per day. But a study earlier this year from Columbia University claimed that the science on salt is very heavily polarized: 54 percent of scientists support cutting down overall salt intake nationwide, while 33 percent felt there would be no difference and 13 percent weren’t sure.
Salt is often blamed for hypertension, which can result in heart disease and stroke, two leading forms of death in the U.S. But many scientists say that it’s only really a problem for those who consume a heavy amount of salt, and most average Americans aren’t eating an unhealthy amount of it.
The Obama administration is putting out some voluntary guidelines via the FDA, which could lead to regulations and taxation to discourage loading up pre-packaged food and restaurant menu options with salt
“There are two almost distinct bodies of scholarship–one supporting and one opposing the claim that salt reduction in populations will improve clinical outcomes,” David Johns, a doctoral student at the university, said in the statement. “Each is driven by a few prolific authors who tend to cite other researchers who share their point of view, with little apparent collaboration between the two ‘sides.'”