Sodium and Potassium Intakes and Their Ratio in Adults (18–90 y): Findings from the Irish National Adult Nutrition Survey

Authors

Eoin James Morrissey, Department of Biological Sciences, Cork Institute of Technology, Cork, IrelandFollow
Miriam Giltinan, School of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University College Cork, T12 K8AF Cork, Ireland
Laura Kehoe, School of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University College Cork, T12 K8AF Cork, Ireland
Anne P. Nugent, UCD Institute of Food and Health, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland; Institute for Global Food Security, School of Biological Sciences, Queens University Belfast, Belfast BT7 1NN, Northern Ireland, UK
Breige A. McNulty, UCD Institute of Food and Health, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland
Albert Flynn, School of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University College Cork, T12 K8AF Cork, Ireland
Janette Walton, Department of Biological Sciences, Cork Institute of Technology, Cork, Ireland; School of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University College Cork, T12 K8AF Cork, IrelandFollow

ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4758-5328

Document Type

Article

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Disciplines

Biology | Life Sciences

Publication Details

Nutrients, vol. 12, no. 4. © 2020 The Authors.

Abstract

An individual’s sodium to potassium intake ratio (Na:K) has been shown to be an important predictor of hypertension. The aim of this study was to estimate the mean 24 h urinary Na, K and Na:K of Irish adults and to identify the foods that determine Na:K in a nationally representative sample of Irish adults. This study was based on data from the Irish National Adult Nutrition Survey (2008–2010) (NANS), which collected spot urine samples and dietary data in a nationally representative sample of Irish adults aged 18+ years. The mean urinary molar Na:K of Irish men and women was 1.90 and 2.15, respectively, which exceed target molar ratios of ≤1.0 and ≤2.0. The mean estimated 24-h urinary excretion of Na was 4631 mg for men and 3525 mg for women, which exceed target maximum population intakes for all gender and age groups. The mean estimated 24-h urinary excretion of K was 3894 mg for men and 2686 mg for women, with intakes in women of all ages and older men (65+ years) below current recommendations. The key foods positively associated with a lower Na:K were fruits, vegetables, potatoes, breakfast cereals, milk, yogurt and fresh meat, while the foods negatively associated with a lower Na:K were breads, cured and processed meats and butters and fat spreads. Strategies to reduce sodium and increase potassium intakes are necessary to lower population Na:K, which may help to reduce the burden of hypertension-related diseases in the Irish population.

Recommended Citation

Morrissey E, Giltinan M, Kehoe L, Nugent AP, McNulty BA, Flynn A, Walton J. Sodium and Potassium Intakes and Their Ratio in Adults (18–90 y): Findings from the Irish National Adult Nutrition Survey. Nutrients. 2020; 12(4):938. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12040938