Abstract
Numerous clinical and epidemiological studies have indicated that a high sodium intake, even within the range of the amounts contained in habitual diets, is associated with high urinary calcium excretion in both young and adult healthy subjects of both sexes. Results of some clinical and epidemiological studies on elderly women also show that high sodium intake accelerates urinary excretion of deoxypyridinoline, a specific marker of bone resorption. Furthermore, in two epidemiological studies of postmenopausal women, negative associations between sodium intake and bone mineral content were observed. These findings suggest that habitual excess dietary salt (NaCI) could be a factor resulting in bone loss through the promotion of bone resorption, at least in elderly women.
