Ketone Supplementation as a Strategy to Reduce the Negative Health Effects of High Dietary Salt in Older Adults

Summary

Most Americans consume excess dietary salt based on the recommendations set by the American Heart Association and Dietary Guidelines for Americans. High dietary salt impairs blood pressure control by affecting systemic blood vessels and the kidneys. These changes contribute to excess salt consumption being associated with increased risk for chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in America. Salt is particularly deleterious in older adults who are more likely to exhibit salt-sensitive hypertension. However, salt consumption remains high in the United States. Thus, there is a critical need for strategies to counteract the effects of high dietary salt as consumption is likely not going to decrease. One promising option is ketones, metabolites that are produced in the liver during prolonged exercise and very low-calorie diets. While exercise and low-calorie diets are beneficial, not many people engage in these activities. Limited evidence indicates that ketone supplements improve cardiovascular health in humans. Additionally, published rodent data indicates that ketone supplements prevent high salt-induced increases in blood pressure, blood vessel dysfunction, and kidney injury. Our human pilot data also indicates that high dietary salt reduces intrinsic ketone production, but it is unclear whether ketone supplementation confers humans' protection against high salt similar to rodents. Therefore, the investigators seek to conduct a short-term high-dietary salt study to determine whether ketone supplementation prevents high dietary salt from eliciting increased blood pressure, blood vessel dysfunction, and kidney injury/impaired blood flow. The investigators will also measure inflammatory markers in blood samples and isolate immune cells that control inflammation. Lastly, the investigators will also measure blood ketone concentration and other circulating metabolites that may be altered by high salt, which could facilitate novel therapeutic targets to combat high salt.

Description

Eligibility

Age range

60–85 years

Sex

All

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Interventions

• Dietary Supplement
  No Salt, No β-OHB

  Participants will consume the following for ten days. Enteric capsules will be filled with a dextrose placebo. The placebo supplement will be a β-OHB-free, taste and viscosity-matched, beverage produced by KetoneAid.

• Dietary Supplement
  High Salt, No β-OHB

  Participants will consume the following for ten days. Enteric capsules will be filled with Morton's table salt. Sodium consumption will be normalized to caloric intake (2 mg Sodium/Calorie). The placebo supplement will be a β-OHB-free, taste and viscosity-matched, beverage produced by KetoneAid.

• Dietary Supplement
  High Salt, High β-OHB

  Participants will consume the following for ten days. Enteric capsules will be filled with Morton's table salt. Sodium consumption will be normalized to caloric intake (2 mg Sodium/Calorie). Ketone beverage will be the β-OHB supplement produced by KetoneAid. Participants will consume 24 mL (12 grams β-OHB) of the ketone beverage three times a day (total 36 grams β-OHB).

Location