NEW ORLEANS — A study presented Nov. 14 at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions in New Orleans found about 90 percent of the 827 US adults in the study consumed more than the recommended daily amount of sodium. The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends people consume less than 2,300 mg. of sodium per day.
The preliminary study revealed an average daily intake of 3,662 mg. with men on average having a higher intake than women. Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health analyzed 24-hour urine excretions from adults age 20 to 69 in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).
The 24-hour urine method gives more precise results than other methods, said Jacqueline D. Wright, a doctor of public health (DrPH) and epidemiologist at the NIH’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute in Bethesda, Maryland.
“There can be measurement error done in the diet assessment method that is based on participant recall,” she said. “So this method (the 24-hour urine method) is considered more precise.”
Mary E. Cogswell, DrPH, of the Atlanta-based CDC, served as lead author of the study.
The study also found average daily potassium intake of 2,202 mg., which is below the level of 4,700 mg. or more recommended in the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Women tended to have lower potassium levels than men.
