Is sugar as bad as salt for blood pressure?

We have known for a long time that a high salt intake can cause a rise in blood pressure. But several studies have recently shown that drinking sugary beverages has a similar impact on blood pressure.

But it was not glucose that was the culprit; it was only fructose that caused blood pressure to go up.

Table sugar is made of glucose and fructose. In the experiment, when volunteers were given drinks sweetened only with glucose, their blood pressure did not increase. Their blood pressure only went up when the drinks were sweetened with fructose.