Overview

• Published in the Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging, the cohort tracked more than 6,500 adults in Japan’s Yamagata region for roughly four years.
• Higher mortality risk was concentrated among people who ate ramen several times a week and drank more than half of the soup.
• Men under 70 and those who consumed alcohol showed the strongest associations with increased risk.
• The findings point to high sodium in the broth as the likely pathway, with links to hypertension, stroke and other cardiometabolic conditions.
• Researchers advise eating ramen only occasionally, skipping most of the soup or using less seasoning, while noting the results are observational and not proof of causation.