Sodium Intake and Prevalence of Hypertension, Coronary Heart Disease, and Stroke in Korean Adults

Background: Despite all the research that has been conducted so far on the correlation between sodium intake and hypertension, coronary heart disease, and stroke, the results thereof have no consistency. Methods: By utilizing the data of the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we carried out a more systematic investigation on sodium intake and prevalence rates in Korean adults. Sodium intake per kilogram, on which sodium intake is divided by weight, was applied to a model as a variable and the data has been separately analyzed according to sex. The total number of observed values after outlier elimination was 27,346, including 10,936 men and 16,410 women. Results: It was found that there is a positive correlation between sodium intake and prevalence rates of coronary heart disease, while potassium intake has a negative correlation with prevalence rates of hypertension and stroke. Conclusion: In order to control the effect of sodium on diseases, attention must also be paid to the influence of potassium on diseases as a covariate, and it is considered that additional research should be made regarding the role of potassium in studying the impact of sodium on health in the future.