This is quite a piece @fancybrothers. Of a truth, high salt consumption and sodium intake is a silent killer of its own. My mum suffered from hypertension and HBP for years. Despite various forms of treatments, i'm pretty sure it contributed to her death last year. Just like you noted, a lot of facts are still unclear about the pathophysiology of hypertension. Hopefully, more research and studies would uncover more of the mysteries in the not too distant future.