Excess Salt in Prepared Foods and Home Kitchens Preventing Healthy Hearts

SAN DIEGO, Sept. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- The 14th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Heart Failure Society of America (HFSA) will feature a discussion on low sodium diets, "Managing Salt in the Diet," presented by Dr. Terry A. Lennie, Associate Professor in the College of Nursing at the University of Kentucky. The focal point of Dr. Lennie's discussion will be on reducing dietary sodium intake.  

High-sodium diets place people with heart failure at high risk for hospitalization. Dr. Lennie's presentation will concentrate on strategies for overcoming barriers to reducing sodium in the diets of all people, including those with chronic heart failure.  

"Currently, as the popularity of home-cooked foods and accessibility to low-sodium prepared foods decreases, men have about 1.8 times more sodium in their diets than is considered healthy. Women, on average, do better, but still have 1.3 times more sodium in their diets than is recommended," said Dr. Lennie.

There have been major changes in the diets of Americans over the past few decades as more consumers buy prepared and restaurant food as opposed to cooking at home. At the same time, the food industry has been adding more sodium to prepared foods. Dr. Lennie will address these challenges in his discussion on combating the sodium overload.

"The high reliance on the food industry makes it difficult to lower sodium in the diet," said Dr. Lennie. "This doesn't dishearten us because everyday techniques such as retraining the palate for sodium and cooking at home can help lower universal sodium consumption and keep the heart healthy."

Dr. Lennie holds a joint Ph.D. in Nursing and Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in neurobehavior at the University of Michigan. Since 2003, he has held the title of associate professor of nursing at the University of Kentucky. He also serves as co-director of the RICH Heart Program and Associate Dean for the Ph.D. Program in the College of Nursing.

For a complete list of annual meeting sessions or for details on attending the conference, call (617) 226-7183 or visit www.hfsa.org and click on Annual Scientific Meeting. There is no registration fee for accredited journalists. Interview areas will be available on-site in addition to a fully-staffed press room with phone and internet accessibility. You may follow news from the meeting on Twitter #HFSA

About Heart Failure

Heart failure is a progressive condition in which the heart muscle becomes weakened after it is injured, most commonly from heart attack or high blood pressure, and gradually loses its ability to pump enough blood to supply the body's needs. Many people are not aware they have heart failure because the symptoms are often mistaken for signs of getting older. Heart failure affects from 4.6 to 4.8 million individuals in the United States. Demographic and clinical evidence strongly suggests that the prevalence of heart failure will increase throughout the next decade. Ten to 15 years ago heart failure was considered a "death sentence;" however, recent advances in treatment have shown that early diagnosis and proper care in early stages of the condition are key to slowing, stopping or in some cases reversing progression, improving quality of life, and extending life expectancy. For more information on heart failure, please visit www.abouthf.org.

About the Heart Failure Society of America

The Heart Failure Society of America (HFSA) is a nonprofit educational organization, founded in 1994 as the first organized association of heart failure experts. The HFSA provides a forum for all those interested in heart function, heart failure research and patient care. The Society also serves as a resource for governmental agencies (FDA, NIH, NHLBI, CMS). The HFSA Annual Scientific Meeting is designed to highlight recent advances in the development of strategies to address the complex epidemiological, clinical and therapeutic issues of heart failure. Additional information on HFSA can be found at www.hfsa.org.

SOURCE The Heart Failure Society of America