This means a big change in my shopping listwhy does the salt guideline have to be so strict?
Human experiments have not been done to see if a deliberate increase in salt intake would cause high blood pressure (such experiments would be neither practical nor ethical), but chimpanzees (our closest animal relatives) develop high blood pressure on a diet of cereal biscuits called Monkey Chow, with a sodium content of 240 mg/100 g. This is only twice the level of sodium permitted in low-salt foods for human consumption. Studies comparing blood pressure and habitual salt intake in different human populations indicate that the margin of safety may also be rather narrow for people.
