Low Salt Diet in Pregnant Mothers Is Associated with Enhanced Salt Appetite in Their Offspring of Dahl Salt-Sensitive Rats

Since hypertension is the leading risk factor for various organ damages, in order to prevent the onset of hypertension, salt restriction has been campaigned over decades. However, unfortunately, the role of salt intake for health has not fully discussed depending on their life-stage. In this paper, the authors investigated an influence of salt intake during gestation or lactation in salt preference of weaning Dahl salt sensitive (Dahl S) strain.

In the study, nine-week-old female Dahl S rats, after mated with the male, were divided into 1) high-salt group fed a 4% NaCl diet (high-salt mother) or 2) low-salt group fed a 0.3% NaCl diet (low-salt mother) during gestation or lactation periods. Using 0.4%, 0.6% and 0.8% (w/v) saline solutions, the authors assessed salt preference in their offspring after weaning. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) was determined by tail cuff method.

The results indicated that both the male and female offspring from low-salt mothers during gestation consumed equal amounts of any saline solution. However, the amount of each saline solution was higher in the offspring of low-salt mothers than those of high-salt mothers. This resulted in a significant increase of salt intake in both the male and female offspring of low-salt mothers compared with those of high-salt mothers. In contrast, both the male and female offspring from low-mothers during lactation rather preferred the lower concentration of saline solution, and this resulted in less salt intake in the offspring of low-salt mothers than those of high-salt mothers.

In summary, in the present study, the results suggest that maternal low salt intake during pregnancy is associated with salt preference in weaning Dahl salt-sensitive rats. Maternal food habit and life-style is influential to determine food preference and subsequent hypertensive or metabolic disorders in their offspring. Further studies are needed to know whether such salt preference in the offspring of low-salt pregnant mothers is related to susceptibility to salt hypertension in Dahl salt sensitive rats.

Article by Anna Hara, et al, from Kyoritsu Women’s University, Tokyo, Japan.

Full access: http://suo.im/4wRGLY