There’s recent evidence that salting meals on the table could be dangerous.

In a recent study by the Tulane University, individuals who at all times add extra salt to their meals had a 28% higher risk of prematurely dying from any cause than those that don’t.

Published within the European Heart Journal, were from 501,379 adult participants within the UK Biobank Study. Recruited between 2006 and 2019, the participants answered questionnaires on their food regimen and lifestyle habits.

Over the period of nine years, greater than 18,000 of the participants died prematurely – which the researchers noted down as before age 75. After assessing their life expectancy, the researchers found that the danger of affected by an premature death was 28% higher amongst participants who said they “at all times” added salt to their meals than those that never or rarely did.

Despite this, there could still be other differences between the 2 groups. For instance, the “never” group is more likely to have had other healthy habits apart from just not adding salt.

Lead researcher Dr. Lu Qi, of Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in Recent Orleans, said his team accounted for a lot of other aspects, inlcuding body weight and health conditions, smoking and drinking habits, and exercise levels. Still, salt habits got linked to the chances of a premature death.

Qi said that the study couldn’t show why, but he believes the effect of excess salt on blood pressure was the contributing factor. Individuals who habitually add salt to their food are said to have an increased risk of dying from either stroke or heart disease.

“To my knowledge, our study is the primary to evaluate the relation between adding salt to foods and premature death,” said Qi, adding that while the findings don’t prove that salt is deadly, it supports going lighter on it.

“It’s a straightforward behavior people can modify,” Qi added.

In accordance with Whitney Linsenmeyer, an assistant professor of nutrition at Saint Louis University, people often reach for the salt shaker out of pure habit.

“Oftentimes, it just takes a little bit of raised consciousness to interrupt that habit,” said Linsenmeyer.