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Knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to salt and their association with 24-hour urinary sodium excretion in hypertensive patients

Hypertension Research (2025)Cite this article

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitude, and behavior (KAB) scores regarding salt among hypertensive patients, as well as the associated factors, and to investigate the relationship between KAB scores related to salt and 24-h urinary sodium levels. The sample of this cross-sectional study consisted of 159 hypertensive patients who presented for examination and follow-up at a public hospital in Turkey between November 2024 and February 2025. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews using a questionnaire. The questionnaire included questions aimed at determining general information, as well as KAB related to salt. Additionally, sodium levels in the patients’ 24-h urine samples were analyzed. Of the hypertensive patients who participated in the study, 49.7% were aged between 56 and 64 years (mean age 54.9 ± 7.8 years), 54.7% were female, and 81.1% lived in urban areas. The sodium level in the participants’ 24-h urine samples was found to be 2643.7 ± 1076.1 mg/day. While most individuals had negative attitudes toward excessive salt, they applied behaviors to reduce salt intake less frequently. It was determined that male, high school graduates, and those living in urban areas tended to have higher KAB scores (p < 0.05). An increase of one point in the KAB score was found to be associated with a 79.6 mg decrease in the sodium level in 24-hour urine (p < 0.05). Educational programs aimed at increasing the KAB score in hypertensive patients may contribute to the development of behavioral changes toward reducing salt intake.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Hitit University, Çorum, Turkey

    Cansu Memiç-İnan

  2. Faculty of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Amasya University, Amasya, Turkey

    Mustafa Çapraz

  3. Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey

    Ayşe Özfer Özçelik

Authors
  1. Cansu Memiç-İnan
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  2. Mustafa Çapraz
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  3. Ayşe Özfer Özçelik
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Contributions

Conceptualization: CMI, MC, AOO; data curation: CMI, MC; data analysis/ interpretation: CMI, MC; statistical analysis: CMI, MC; original manuscript drafting: CMI; manuscript review and editing: CMI, MC, AOO; supervision and mentorship: MC, AOO.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Cansu Memiç-İnan.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

Ethical approval

The study protocol was approved by the Amasya University Non-Interventional Clinical Research Ethics Committee (Approval number: 226379). All methods were performed in accordance with the relevant guidelines and regulations of the Declaration of Helsinki (2013 amendment).

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Informed consent was obtained from all participants prior to participation.

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Memiç-İnan, C., Çapraz, M. & Özçelik, A.Ö. Knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to salt and their association with 24-hour urinary sodium excretion in hypertensive patients. Hypertens Res (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41440-025-02419-1

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