Potassium Intake in India: Opportunity for Mitigating Risks of High-Sodium Diets

Published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Anand et al conducted a cross-sectional study using data from 24 hour urine samples and dietary recall to test the hypothesis of whether potassium intake reduces the effects of a high-sodium diet. Participants were adult males and females from rural and urban areas in India. 24 hour urinary potassium and sodium samples were used as well as a same-day dietary recall survey. Men were found to have higher mean sodium intake than women in both rural and urban settings. Both men and women in the rural setting had higher mean sodium intake than the urban group. In two thirds of the population, potassium intake was less than half of sodium intake. During follow-up, higher potassium excretion was associated with lower blood pressure in urban participants. To read more, click here.