Having too much salt especially for overweight and obese teenagers is harmful for health, finds a new study. The study has unveiled that having food containing too much salt increases the cellular aging among overweight teenagers.

Therefore, it is vital for overweight and obese people to reduce their sodium intake. It may reduce the cellular ageing process in them that plays an important role in the development of heart diseases.

Lead researcher Haidong Zhu from Medical College of Georgia, Georgia Regents University in Augusta, GA. Said they carried out an experiment to prove the same. Nearly 800 teenagers aged between 14 and 18 years were enrolled for the experiment.

The participants were divided into two groups depending on their salt consumption. One group had teens consuming more than 4,100 milligrams of salt a day and the second group had teenagers consuming an average of less than 2,400 milligrams a day.

But as per the recommendations of the American Heart Association, 1,500 milligrams per day is the maximum limit and both the groups consumed more than that. Results unveiled that telomeres were much shorter among overweight or obese teenagers having high salt intake. However, such was not the case with normal-weight teens with high salt intake.

"It is well known that a high salt diet is an important risk factor for hypertension and cardiovascular disease, but the impact of a high salt diet on cardiovascular aging has not been well understood", said Zhu.

Zhu recommended that to reduce the risk of developing heart disease, it is vital to lower salt intake. Moreover, it is easier than reducing weight, said Zhu. The study has been presented at the American Heart Association's EPI/NPAM Scientific Sessions 2014.