Sodium Chloride and Nitrogen Metabolism of Korean Females

한국여자의 소금 및 질소대사에 관하여

In order to study the dally metabolism of sodium chloride and of nitrogen, 24-hour urine samples were collected from 1,593 normal Korean females whose ages varied from 2 to 80 years old. The volume, the concentration of chloride and the osmolality of the urine, add the total nitrogen were determined, along with the resting pulse rate and the blood pressure. The daily urine volume was maintained at $1,000{\sim}1,300\;ml/m^2/day$ in all age groups while the chloride concentration and osmolality of the urine samples were approximately 200 mEq/liter and 600 milliosmoles, respectively, in most of age groups. Hence the daily urinary output of sodium chloride was estimated to be approximately $15g/m^2$/day in adult groups. On the other hand, the daily excretion of total nitrogen amouted to approximately $5{\sim}6g/m^2/day$. These findings indicated that the average Korean females live on low-protein and high-salt diets throughout their life. Despite a known correlation between the incidence of hypertension and the high salt intake, none of the subjects employed in this work showed any sign of hypertension.