I was shocked and broken-hearted when I learned, belatedly, that Graham MacGregor passed away last September. I have worked for many years in the United States to lower sodium levels and CVD rates, and naturally crossed paths with Graham (we co-authored a paper several years ago). I so admired how he combined omniscience regarding the science of sodium and health with ferocity in pushing the food industry and governments around the world to reduce sodium. I and many others will miss him greatly. I wish the best to his co-workers and his family.

Oh such sad news! I worked with Graham to set up the Blood Pressure Association/Blood Pressure UK.  His determination and passion for change was ever present.  He was inspirational.  I still "know my numbers", Graham! My condolences to his family and friends.

I had the privilege of working in his team under the supervision of Prof. He as a postdoc in 2020. Although I worked with him for only one year, he was like a very kind grandfather to me — always patient and supportive. I will always remember his kindness and wisdom. I truly miss him.

At the Hypertension congresses

My condolences to Professor Graham's family. I am currently working on a dissertation on salt-reduction comparing England and Singapore and came across many good work in his legacy as I reviewed the timelines and surveys of England's food policy journey in salt reduction. It was with great sadness that I learn of his passing in September and I am grateful for his dedication in advocacy which in many ways is inspiring for what researchers can do.

So sad to hear of the Profs passing - we were often on opposite sides of the argument but I always learned a lot from the debates and he was a strong influence on the policies I wrote. My condolences to friends and family

My husband and I were sorry to hear about Prof Graham's death, and send our sincere condolences to Christiane and family. We will always think fondly of him, especially his kindness and unflagging support.

So sorry to hear the news of Professor Graham MacGregor’s passing.  I have fond memories of my interactions with him, inspiring me and always pushing me ever harder to do more in reducing sugar in Soft Drinks in Tesco.    He truly did change the nations diets.   “Never was it enough” he would tell me, but his passion, determination and forcefulness of business will truly be missed.   My condolences to his family during this difficult time.   David Beardmore 🙏

Deeply sorry to hear of Graham's death.  Graham was a true visionary with a fierce determination to  get things done.  I was fortunate enough to work with him for almost two decades and I learned a huge amount over that time.  He will be sorely missed - both for his deep insight and his engaging collaboration.  My very best wishes to his family, friends and all those mourning like me.

Sad to hear the news. My condolences to his family and friends. He leaves behind an impressively  wide research legacy.

I started my first research job with Graham nearly 40 years ago and I’m grateful that, by giving me the chance to study for a PhD, he set my off on the research career I have today.

Extremely saddened about the passing of Professor MacGregor.

I had the great pleasure of working with Professor Graham MacGregor from 1974, starting as one of his first research nurses on a subject I knew very basic knowledge on. At first, I was reluctant to take on this responsibility, but with the encouragement and support from Professor de-Wardner and the other clinicians, I agreed to take on the role for three months, providing I could return to my original post if I changed my mind.

I worked hard at improving and tackling every challenge Professor MacGregor threw at me; there were many of these and his expectations were very high. He was instrumental in encouraging and motivating me up to the point where I was managing all the blood pressure research studies, as well as the blood pressure outpatient’s clinic with the help of other nurses.

During this period, a vast number of research fellows, biochemists, and lately nutritionists, all with new research ideas on blood pressure-related topics, joined the unit to achieve their PhD or MD qualifications, and with Professor MacGregor’s supervision and encouragement, moved onto greater jobs after completing.

It was a very happy team, constantly coming up with new ideas, projects, collaborations, and occasional arguments too.

With his encouragement, I was able to set up one of the first nurse-assessed clinics at St. George’s which helped reduce the waiting list and had a huge impact on patient care.

With his support in finding a world-renowned hypertension expert from the UK to speak, I was able to organise hypertension, prevention of stroke, and heart attack meetings for many years. It was very popular amongst the nurses.

Sadly, all good things must come to an end. I retired from Queen Mary’s University in April of 2024 whilst helping in a small way with his action on salt, and more importantly, as a trustee and helpline advisor for the blood pressure UK charity. His main aim throughout his career was to reduce the salt intake in both the UK population and the world, thus reducing blood pressure in adults, and saving lives.

I will always be very grateful to Professor MacGregor for giving me the opportunity and pushing me beyond my limits to improve my position from a research nurse to a senior research fellow during the time I worked with him.

Professor MacGregor encouraged me, even during his illness, to continue working with the unit, even in a small way within my capabilities.

I have known his family equally well during all these years and have fond memories.

My heartfelt condolences to the family he left behind.

A cherished group photo in the Launching meeting of ASC — with Prof. Graham MacGregor and Prof. Fengjun He

Happy moment in the Launching meeting of ASC — with Graham MacGregor, Fengjun He and Jing He

In memory of Graham A MacGregor, founding principal investigator of Action on Salt China (ASC). His vision and lifelong dedication launched our evidence-based salt-reduction programme, inspiring healthier diets across the nation. You will be deeply missed and remembered by all of us, and by the many researchers in the fields of hypertension and salt reduction.

I had the privilege of working with Professor Graham MacGregor from 1996 until his passing. I first joined Graham’s team at the Blood Pressure Unit, St George’s University of London, as a volunteer. At that time, I had just arrived from China, and my spoken English was not good—I lost count of how many times we misunderstood each other. In spite of this, Graham believed in me, and his encouragement gave me the confidence to pursue a PhD. After completing my doctorate, I continued working with Graham, focusing mainly on salt reduction to prevent high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease. In 2009, our team moved to Queen Mary University of London.

Over nearly 30 years of working closely with Graham, I learned so much from him. My career journey—from volunteer to Professor of Global Health Research—would not have been possible without his continued guidance and strong support. He was a true inspiration to me and to our whole team.

Graham was the pioneer and a global leader in salt reduction. In the early 1980s, he carried out the first well-controlled double-blind trial showing that a modest reduction in salt intake significantly lowers blood pressure, and in later studies showing a clear dose-response relationship between salt intake and blood pressure. Subsequently, many other studies including our own systematic review and meta-analyses demonstrated that the totality of the evidence for reducing population salt intake was very strong, forming the key evidence base for salt reduction campaigns worldwide.

Graham had a unique ability to push governments and the food industry to act. He was ruthless, fearless, and persistent in persuading food manufacturers to gradually reduce the large and unnecessary amounts of salt added to our foods. He championed a target-based approach, setting progressively lower salt targets for more than 80 food categories. This strategy, adopted by the Food Standards Agency, led to substantial reductions in the salt content of foods, resulting in decreases in population salt intake, blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease mortality in the UK. Graham went on to help many other countries, including Malaysia and China, reduce their salt intake. His work has undoubtedly prevented hundreds of thousands of people from suffering or dying from stroke, heart disease, and heart failure each year.

Although Graham was widely recognised for his public health advocacy, he was also an outstanding clinical scientist. He was meticulous at every stage of research—from study design and protocol implementation to data analysis—and he expected the same from his team. For example, in all of our studies, data had to be carefully checked, double-checked, and independently verified. It was this rigour and thoroughness that made our research a trusted source of evidence, particularly at a time when methodologically flawed studies caused controversy, impeding global efforts to reduce salt intake.

Graham was often described as a thorn in the side of the food industry and government because of his unwavering and uncompromising approach to reducing salt and sugar. Yet on a personal level, he was very kind and always willing to help our team whenever we were in need. From my own experience, in 2001, when my husband became seriously ill and doctors could not determine the cause, it was Graham who helped, eventually leading to the right diagnosis. With proper treatment, my husband made a remarkable recovery. I will forever be indebted to Graham for saving my husband’s life and for the countless ways he supported our colleagues. All of us will miss him deeply.

Finally, I would like to say to Graham: Dear Prof, rest in peace. Your legacy will continue. The team you trained at Action on Salt and Sugar has promised to redouble its efforts to reduce salt and sugar consumption, saving lives in the UK and around the world.

So sad to hear the passing of  Prof Graham Mac Gregor .    A great Loss  to the  Global  in term of Salt Reduction , Sugar and  cardiovascular agenda. He mentored Salt Reduction In Malaysia since 2011 and was very bold in advocating for mandatory labelling and setting mandatory maximum  salt  target for Malaysian high salt contents products which is now part of the   policy of The Salt Reduction Strategy For Malaysia 2025- 2030. We owed him  for his charismatic move , shared  all his technical  and expertise gained worldwide to  push and even joined the team to the ground level   to implement the    Population Based salt intake study in Malaysia  and in which now is part of the  National, Health and Morbidity Survey of Malaysia to be done every 4 years.  Most of his suggestion  through UK 's Experience have been adopted by   Malaysia  through the current policy .  May his legacy  will be  remembered and continued by  everyone who has been in his  guidance. 

I am deeply saddened to hear of Prof. MacGregor’s passing. I was fortunate to work under his mentorship during my PhD studies 10 years ago. His lifetime of unwavering dedication to implementing a low-salt, low-sugar, health-friendly environment and his commitment to improving population diet and public health have been a constant inspiration to me. He instilled in me the pursuit of doing the best science—science that makes a difference. His wit, wisdom, humor, and legacy will always be remembered. We will miss you, Prof. My condolences to his family and dear colleagues at QMUL.

I first met Graham 11 years ago over coffee with Katharine to discuss the possibility of launching Action on Sugar. I remember feeling nervous, as obesity wasn’t a subject I knew much about at the time - but I left that meeting utterly inspired by his formidable drive, energy, passion, and no-nonsense approach. (As a Northerner, I always appreciated that blunt honesty.)

I was delighted to then have the chance to work alongside him for over a decade. Graham was a real character and the world needs more people like him. He was never in it for the glory or the ego when it came to PR and media; it was always about delivering a clear message and driving action.

I will remember his tenacity, his dry wit, and his refusal to stop. I’ll always be inspired by him and motivated by his call to action that still echoes for me today: keep going! RIP Graham. 

Sapiens Health Foundation, a NGO from Chennai, held jointly with IIT Madras The Salt Fight conference on November 11th, 2017. The purpose of the conference was to create awareness about the permissible daily intake of salt, the relationship of salt to blood pressure and other diseases and lastly, to make it compulsory for food labels to mention the salt content. High salt intake in the population is responsible for hypertension, which is still the number one killer in the world. Dr. Rajan Ravichandran, Chairman of the foundation, discussed the purpose of the conference and the relevance in Indian scenario. Prof. Bhaskar Ramamurthy, Director IIT Madras, inaugurated the conference. Prof. Graham MacGregor from the WASH (World Action on Salt and Health) UK spoke on the global scenario and the need for urgent measures in India to reduce the salt intake. Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, Deputy Director General of WHO, also confirmed the need for salt control and the relevance to non-communicable disease prevalence in the country. Mrs. Anita Makhijani from the FSSAI (Food Safety Standards Association of India) revealed the plans by the FSSAI for salt labelling. Prof. Muraleedharan from IIT discussed the legal and other measures that could be adopted by the government. The morning session of the conference was followed by a workshop of eminent professionals chartering the future line of action for salt reduction in the country.

So sad to know about Prof. MacGregor’s passing away on 1 Sept . He was truly a champion who spearheaded the movement for Salt reduction with passion, perseverance and great deal of dedication and commitment.

His work will continue to inspire the medical fraternity.

Dr. Rajan Ravichandran

Chairman, Sapiens Health Foundation

Prof. Graham Macgregor has been our mentor for the salt reduction in India from the year 2010. In 2017 he visited us and took part in two conferences on Salt and Health, one at IIT Madras and the other at IIT, Mumbai. Both the conferences were attended by more than 250 delegates mainly physicians. In the conference he spoke on the urgent need to reduce salt intake in India. We have been in regular touch with him and taking his guidance for our active salt reduction programs conducted throughout India. Last I had the opportunity to speak to him in July 2024 when he had been just discharged from the hospital. Even then he was very keen on hearing the progress that we have made in our salt fight venture. One of the most interesting quotes of Prof. Macgregor was that “if your skin tastes salty that means you are taking extra salt”. During the conference one of the attendants wanted to know whether his physician was correct in recommending extra salt if the blood pressure is low. Prof. Macgregor came down the dais and congratulated the person that his blood pressure is low and asked him to change his physician.

Dr. Rajan Ravichandran,

Chairman, Sapiens Health Foundation.

Chennai, India.

The SALT FIGHT Conference — with Dr. Rajan Ravichandran and Prof. Graham MecGregor

I was lucky enough to have my first medical house job with Professor Graham MacGregor at St George’s Hospital. After teaching rounds, he would have us all into his office for coffee, where he would recount tales of his own previous boss and mentor at Charing Cross, Professor Hugh De Wardener, with whom he developed his understanding of salt, the kidney and their intimate relationship with blood pressure.

It was not until I was a renal specialist registrar that I looked up Professor MacGregor again and approached him about a research position. It was the best decision of my working life and career. I learned so much from this man and his team. His incredible energy and determination, to forge a research agenda together with a much bigger drive to make a difference to patients and their outcomes from having high blood pressure, was inspirational to me.

You could have called him dogmatic, and he was. You could guarantee he would stand up at the end of any lecture and make a point about salt being the root cause of high blood pressure. He was often pilloried for being so wedded to this narrative, as many colleagues dismissed the evidence that there was at that time, as overstated, a niche interest, and those ‘nay-sayers’ argued that the population benefits would never be shown. But Graham never wavered. He had an unshakeable conviction that reducing salt intake could prevent high blood pressure and, with it, strokes, heart attacks, and kidney disease.

From 1995 through to 2025, the science evolved in exactly the way he predicted. Early observational studies and short-term trials gave way to large-scale meta-analyses, long-term cohort studies, and ultimately real-world evidence from population salt reduction programmes. Graham led the way for countries around the world to develop programs to cut salt intake, leading to tangible declines in average blood pressure and cardiovascular deaths. What had once been dismissed as a provocative idea became one of the cornerstones of cardiovascular prevention.

I went on to qualify and then work as an NHS nephrologist, but my own interest in salt, blood pressure and the link between those and cardiovascular and kidney disease remains.

I am indebted to Graham for all that he taught me, for supporting my early and later career and most especially for inspiring the belief that you had to be the expert that creates the path for change. I am humbled that he trusted me to be caretaker of his patient charity, Blood Pressure UK and I will do all that I can to continue his work to improve health outcomes related to blood pressure.

I will miss his council greatly but feel honoured to have been in his orbit as a trusted member of his team.

My sincere condolences to Grahams family at this time of loss. 

Prof, our first meeting in 1999 as an SHO left me feeling intimidated by your gravitas and academic prowess. Over the years you have showed me kindness, respect and been a huge influence in all our lives. Your drive never left you and inspired many. Achievements aside, you leave a legacy. We are all grateful to khh.org.uk for the wonderful care in your closing days, spent with dignity. Thank you, from your daughter in law