Apr 15, 2014 12:39 PM EDT By Jaleesa Baulkman, UniversityHerald Reporter

England's nationwide campaign to reduce salt intake resulted in a drastic reduction in heart disease and stroke deaths among the population in the last decade, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The English government in 2003 launched a widespread effort to encourage companies to gradually reduce sodium levels in processed foods. The campaign led to a 15 percent decrease by 2011.

Researchers believe the reduction in salt consumption is an "important contributor" to a 40 percent reduction in stroke and heart disease deaths in the last decade, the Los Angeles Times reported.

For the study, investigators analyzed data from more than 31,500 people participating in the Health Survey for England between 2003 to 2011. During the study period, levels of salt intake among the population decreased by about 15 percent. Deaths from stroke decreased by 42 percent and deaths from coronary heart disease dropped by 40 percent during this time, Fox News reported.

Overall cholesterol levels and rates of smoking also declined during the study period while produce intake and body mass index both increased.  Researchers noted that the "single largest" contribution to the decline in deaths was a decrease in blood pressure. Salt consumption increases blood pressure - a risk factor for stroke and heart disease.

At the same time, there were improvements in treatment for high blood pressure and heart disease.

Some physicians said that the United Kingdom has been far more proactive and successful at enforcing the reduction of sodium in foods, compared to the United States, Fox News reported.

"In the U.K., the political action group 'Action on Salt' worked with the government and the food industry to slowly wean the British populace off salt, with excellent results. Yet, our food industry has fought a similar action tooth and nail," Dr. Robert Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist at University of California, San Francisco, told the Los Angeles Times.

The findings were recently published in the British Medical Journal.

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