Dietary salt loading produced significant increases in PWV and BP in hypertensive volunteers. Correlations between BP and PWV suggest that salt loading may have a BP-independent effect on vascular wall function. This further supports the importance of dietary sodium restriction in the management of hypertension. This trial was registered with the Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry as ACTRN12609000161224.

Dietary salt loading did not produce significant increases in PWV and blood pressure in normotensive subjects with systolic blood pressure <130 mmHg. The lack of an observed effect supports Guyton's pressure-natriuresis hypothesis with appropriate renal excretion of the excess sodium load.