Salt — what the science says

In a nutshell

WHO recommends less than 5 g of salt a day; the average adult worldwide eats around 11 g.¹
When people ate 4.4 g less salt a day, their blood pressure fell by 4/2 mmHg, more in those with high blood pressure.³
A potassium salt substitute reduced strokes and deaths in a large trial.⁵

1How much salt

WHO recommendation under 5 g The World Health Organization: less than 5 g of salt a day, i.e. 2 g of sodium. The average adult worldwide ate about 11 g of salt a day in 2021.¹

EFSA recommendation 2 g sodium EFSA considers 2 g of sodium a day (5 g of salt) a safe and adequate intake for adults; at this level there is enough confidence that the risk of cardiovascular disease is reduced.²

Food labels show salt. To get sodium, divide it by 2.5.

2Salt and blood pressure

Strong evidence — Cochrane −4.2 / −2.1 mmHg A review of 34 randomised trials with 3,230 people: 4.4 g less salt a day for at least 4 weeks lowered blood pressure by 4.2/2.1 mmHg. In people with high blood pressure by 5.4/2.8 mmHg, in people with normal blood pressure by 2.4/1.0 mmHg.³

Strong evidence — 133 studies 133 studies A summary of 133 studies with 12,197 people: the more salt people cut, the more their blood pressure fell. It helped older people and those with higher blood pressure more; short studies underestimate the effect.⁴

3Where salt hides

Moderate evidence — a study of 450 people 71% In a study of 450 US adults, salt added to food outside the home — in manufacturing and restaurants — made up 71% of all sodium. Salt added during home cooking made up less than 6% and salt from the shaker at the table 5%.⁷

According to WHO, in high-income countries a large share of salt comes from processed foods: bread, processed meat, salty snacks and sauces.¹

4Salt substitutes

Moderate evidence — a large randomised trial −14% The SSaSS trial: 20,995 people in rural China who had had a stroke or were over 60 with high blood pressure. With a salt substitute (75% sodium chloride, 25% potassium chloride), they had 14% fewer strokes, 13% fewer major cardiovascular events and 12% lower mortality over almost 5 years. Serious problems with high potassium did not increase.⁵

Since 2025, WHO has recommended that adults replace regular salt with a potassium-containing substitute — but not pregnant women, children or people with kidney disease or other problems excreting potassium.⁶

What to take from this

Watch mainly bread, processed meat, cheese and ready meals; salt from the shaker is the minority.^1,7
Every gram counts — the more salt you cut, the more your blood pressure falls.^3,4
ForkRep adds up salt for each day and watches the 5 g limit.

Sources

Written on 9 Oct 2026, based on studies available at that date. Newer research may change the conclusions.

World Health Organization (2026). Sodium reduction (fact sheet). who.int
EFSA NDA Panel (2019). Dietary reference values for sodium. EFSA Journal 17:e05778. doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2019.5778
He F. J., Li J., MacGregor G. A. (2013). Effect of longer term modest salt reduction on blood pressure: Cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised trials. BMJ 346:f1325. doi.org/10.1136/bmj.f1325
Huang L. et al. (2020). Effect of dose and duration of reduction in dietary sodium on blood pressure levels: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised trials. BMJ 368:m315. doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m315
Neal B. et al. (2021). Effect of salt substitution on cardiovascular events and death. N Engl J Med 385:1067–1077. doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2105675
World Health Organization (2025). Use of lower-sodium salt substitutes: WHO guideline. who.int
Harnack L. J. et al. (2017). Sources of sodium in US adults from 3 geographic regions. Circulation 135:1775–1783. doi.org/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.116.024446

This is general information and does not replace a doctor. If you have kidney disease or take medicines for blood pressure or the heart, ask a doctor about salt substitutes.