Tension Over Hypertension: To Salt or Not? Once again, the American public is confused as to whether they should cut back on salt in an effort to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. The uncertainty this time is due to a recent meta-analysis suggesting that reducing dietary consumption of sodium resulted in lowered blood pressure but had no effect on cardiovascular morbidity or mortality.

Practice News Brief: More Than One-quarter of American Adults Reported to Have Hypertension. Data from the 2008 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) show that an estimated 25.8% of U.S. adults at least 18 years of age had been told by a healthcare professional at two or more medical visits that they had hypertension. An estimated 19.4% of adults with hypertension are unaware they have the condition.