Smoking With High Salt Intake Doubles Risk of Rheumatoid Arthritis

Smokers with a diet high in sodium have a doubled risk for developing symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), according to a recent study.

“These findings will provide new insights into the aetiopathogenic process leading to the development of RA among smokers. The finding of sodium being a risk factor for the development of RA among smokers is intriguing, as it may explain discrepancies in previous studies of diet as a risk factor for RA,” said Bjorn Sundstrom, PhD, an author of the study and a researcher in the department of public health and clinical medicine, rheumatology at Umea University in Sweden.
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For the case-controlled study, researchers examined 386 individuals who began their diet a median of 7.7 years prior to manifesting RA symptoms; the diet was part of the community’s Vasterbotten Intervention Program (VIP). Investigators used 1886 matched controls as comparisons from the same VIP database.

The study showed no significant link between a diet high in sodium and the manifestation of RA. Once researchers adjusted their analysis for current smokers, they found that 54% of heightened RA development from smoking was linked to high levels of sodium consumption.

Investigators noted that they were no able to link increased risk of RA from smoking to a diet low in sodium.

During the study, researchers screened for social factors, smoking, physical exercise, and dietary habits.

The complete study is published in the September issue of Rheumatology.

-Michelle Canales

References:

Sundstrom B, Johansson I, Dahlqvist SR. Interaction between dietary sodium and smoking increases the risk for rheumatoid arthritis: results from a nested case-control study. Rheumatology. 2014 September [epub ahead of print] doi: 0.1093/rheumatology/keu330.

Oxford University Press. Smokers who consume too much sodium at greater risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis. September 10, 2014. www.alphagalileo.org/Organisations/ViewItem.aspx?OrganisationId=1093&ItemId=145229&CultureCode=en. Accessed September 11, 2014.