Reducing salt in your diet will not help lessen the risks of high blood pressure, stroke and heart attack. The long cherished belief that salt was a major culprit in raising blood pressure has been challenged by scientists.
Researchers from Copenhagen University reanalysed 58 studies that were carried out over a 30 year period until 1997. They concluded that, overall, the results did not support a general recommendation to reduce sodium intake. However, reducing salt in the diet could be used as a supplementary treatment in hypertension (JAMA, 1998; 279: 1383-91).