The Potassium-Sodium Balancing Act

“Cut back on salt” is the prevailing advice today. That’s because 98 percent of Americans consume twice as much sodium as they should, according to the American Heart Association. Cutting back sodium to below 1,500 milligrams (mg) per day could decrease the U.S. rate of high blood pressure by 26 percent, which could help save thousands of lives and billions of dollars in health care costs each year. But reducing sodium is only part of the equation.