Dietary Salt Intake, Blood Pressure, and Genes

Our ancestors developed in environments characterized by salt scarcity; their salt intake was less than 1 g/day and efficient physiological mechanisms were evolved to retain salt. Nowadays, in many countries in the world, the current dietary salt intake is very high (10 g/day on average) and largely exceeds the recommended 5 g/day. Although not all studies agree, many evidences point to a relationship between high salt consumption, blood pressure, and its associated cardiovascular risk. Therefore, the adoption of a salt intake reduction is justified. Salt sensitivity, defined as blood pressure response to salt intake, is heterogeneous among subjects. Many authors have investigated the genetic bases of salt sensitivity, mainly with a candidate gene approach. Most of these findings need replication and much work is still necessary to identify the true genetic risk factors.