• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.30 no.8
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• pp.920-929
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• 1997

This study examined the effect of dietary salt levels on the incidence and cure of gastric ulcer in rats. Two sets of experiment were conducted . In the first experiment, the rats were divided into 3 groups. The 3 groups were fed 0%, 4%, and 8% NaCl diets respectively for 20days. The rats were given water -immersion restraint stress at the end of the dietary period , and sacrificed. The ulcer index by histological test was higher in rats fed the 8% NaCl diet than those in the other groups. The hexosamine and glutathione levels were significantly lower in the rats fed the 8% NaCl diet. Hematocrit and total iron binding capacity(TIBC) showed lower values caused by bleeding of gastric mucosa. The second experiment was designed to determine the effect of soldium concentration on the cure of gastric ulcer . As the gastric ulcer was recovered, ulcer length was gradually deceased in the control group but not changed in the 8% NaCl diet group. The gastric hexosamine and hepatic glutathione were increased in the control group but decreased in the 8% NaCl diet group. The hematologic indices of stressed rats showed the same tendency. As a result, dietary salt per se did not cause gastric ulcer . Once an ulcer is formed by stress or any other factor, higher levels of dietary salt may be detrimental to gastric mucosa, thereby delaying the healing of the ulcer. It is recommended that dietary salt intake be reduced in stress-prone people.