February 9/Los Angeles/States News Service -- In research using 2,657 participants in the Northern Manhattan Study (NOMAS), scientists found that high salt intake, independent of the hypertension it causes, was linked to a dramatically increased risk of ischemic strokes (when a blood vessel blockage cuts off blood flow to the brain).
In the study, people who consumed more than 4,000mg per day of sodium had more than double the risk of stroke compared to those consuming less than 1,500mg per day.