Sodium consumption among hypertensive adults advised to reduce their intake: national health and nutrition examination survey, 1999-2004

J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2012; 14:447–454. ©2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. The authors estimated the prevalence of taking action to reduce intake related to actual sodium consumption among 2970 nonpregnant US adults 18 years and older with self‐reported hypertension by using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999–2004. Adjusted multiple linear regression assessed differences in mean sodium intake by action status. A total of 60.5% of hypertensive adults received advice to reduce sodium intake. Of this group, 83.7% took action to reduce sodium. Action to reduce sodium intake differed significantly by age, race/ethnicity, and use of an antihypertensive. The mean (±standard error) sodium intake among hypertensive adults was 3341±37 mg and differed by sex, age, race/ethnicity, education, and body mass index (P<.05), with the lowest intake among adults aged 65 years and older (2780±48 mg). Mean intake did not differ significantly by action status either overall or by subgroup except for one age category: among patients 65 years and older, mean intake was significantly lower among those who took action (2715±63 mg) than among those who did not (3401±206 mg; P=.0124). Regardless of action, mean intake was well above 1999–2004 recommendations for daily sodium intake and about twice as high as the current recommendation for hypertensive adults (1500 mg).