Researchers at Otago University's Christchurch campus are trying to find out once and for all, how bad is salt, or sodium, for you and your heart health?
As part of an international study, they're particularly focused on Māori and Pasifika people.
Reginald Dunn is one of the 200 Kiwis who've suffered heart failure and is taking part in the long-term study on optimal salt intake.
He told 1 NEWS heart failure runs in his family, with his younger brother dying aged 43 and his father having a heart attack in his 80s.
Recently he had his own scare.
"I was squatting 650 pounds and locking up and losing a lot of breath, breathing heavily, and I thought, 'Hell this ain't me', and got a check-up and [there was] a hole in my aorta valve."
The research is funded by the Heart Research Council and Heart Foundation, with the aim to produce global guidelines.
"Suprisingly, we haven't known the right amount of intake that'd be best to improve patients and outcomes," researcher Professor Richard Troughton told 1 NEWS.
"We know most New Zealanders eat more than the Heart Foundation guidelines. They recommend less than 1 teaspoon [a day] and most people exceed it."
Heart failure is a condition where the heart is unable to pump enough blood to meet the body's needs, typically resulting in water and salt retention.
This can cause difficulty breathing, swelling of the legs and extreme fatigue.
It affects one in five New Zealanders, with Māori and Pacific people among the most at risk.
"I think there are some specific foods that Māori may eat - kaimoana for example, a lot of shellfish is high in salt," Māori Advisor Christina McKerchar told 1 NEWS.
"But there's also much processed food high in salt people don't realise - bread, ham and cheese sandwiches - so the dietician is working with them one-on-one to find out what they eat and then tweaking the diet a little."
They're small changes that have already made a huge difference for Mr Dunn.
"I didn't think you'd find me in the supermarket with a magnifying glass looking at salt intake," he says.
"[It's] ridiculous but hey, it's going to help me."
And he hopes the research will help do the same for others.
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