When the doctor tells you lower your salt intake, what does that mean?
People in my family suffer from heart disease and hypertension or high blood pressure. For years, I’ve heard two conflicting points of view about salt.
~ One view holds that salt has been used to season and preserve food for thousands of years. It can’t be all that bad.
~ The other view is salt is very bad for your health, especially if you’re a heart patient and have high blood pressure. You absolutely must find salt substitutes to flavor your food.
No doubt you’ve heard of Dr. Oz. He was such a good doctor, Oprah Winfrey gave him his own TV show. But have you heard of Dr. Axe?
Dr. Josh Axe is doctor to many professional athletes. Also, he and Dr. Oz hang out together. Below is a link to his website. He supplies lots of informative articles discussing pink salt, sea salt, black salt, etc. and comparing them with the common table salt that most of us use in our food. He recommends (it is his educated opinion) that the best sea salt.
Finally! There’s a reconciliation of the views.
It’s not that salt is bad. It’s sodium chloride (NaCl), the everyday common table salt, which is salt that has been refined and has had most of the valuable trace minerals stripped away during the process, that’s not good.
Unrefined sea salt (and other unrefined salts) can actually be beneficial to your health.
Sea Salt: Top 6 Essential Health Benefits
Pink Himalayan Salt Benefits: Better Than Regular Salt?
Is Black Salt Better than Regular Salt? Uses and Benefits
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WARNING!
As with all medical and health information and advice … proceed with caution.
Interesting Facts About the History of Salt.
History indicates that the ancient Egyptians were the first to realize that salt has preserving power. It was used to preserve food and mummies.
Egyptians got their salt from the Nile marshes. The Chinese got salt from Yuncheng, a salt lake in the Shangxi province.
In ancient times, salt was a form of currency. In ancient Greece, slaves were traded for salt. It's where the expression “not worth his salt” comes from. Roman soldiers were paid with salt.
From Bible times to the present day, salt has a religious symbolism and significance. In both the Jewish and Christian faiths, using the phrase “the salt of the earth” indicates purity.
By the 6th century, Moors traded salt for gold; and cakes of salt were used for money in Central Africa.
Then there were the salt taxes, a means of power and wealth for governments. The French Revolution in France was started because of a major grievance regarding the salt tax (and other things). Mahatma Gandhi led a mass protest against the high British tax on salt in India.
Imagine. The salt in the salt shaker that sits on your table at one time shook the world!
P.S. If you really don't feel comfortable using sale, there is an article published at Dr. Axe's website that suggest some salt substitutes.
Healthy Salt Substitute Alternatives vs. Unhealthy Options to Avoid
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