Food Salt Question

[Siskiyoumom]

The local Grocery outlet has Himalayian salt. It is pretty chunky and in pretty sweet jars with corks. About a couple ponds fir $2.99. Has anyone become a salt foodie and tell me what you know about all the new types of salt out there? Thank you.

 

[Parakeet]

We use unrefined Redmond Real Salt for the health benefits. Salt, usually, gets a bad rap from the medical community. In reality, it would be very difficult to consume too much real, unrefined sea salt. It's got all the minerals that salt was intended to supply us with. If you're interested, here's a link on their website that compares their salt with other sea salts https://realsalt.com/comparing-real-salt-to-himalayan-celtic/

We stay away from all refined, white table salt (sodium chloride). Due to iodine's volatility, it's a poor carrier for the added iodine as well as being a disrupt-er to iodine receptors.

Lately I've been noticing a lot of salt being labeled "sea salt" that's pure white. Make sure to look for a salt with flecks of color in it (almost like they added sand to it), which indicates it's not a highly processed, mineral deficient salt.

 

[Publius]

Salt is salt, but if you look around the supper market you will find Iodized salt that has health benefits and most people are deficit on Iodine.
We have Iodized Sea Salt here in the house.

For anyone reading this, when it comes to canning and adding salt you want to avoid using Iodized salt! You can use it for canning but what will happen is the Iodine will etch into the glass jar from the inside and shows up later after you empty the jar and it's dired off and glass will have a milky haze to it. It won't hurt the jar for reuse it just dose not look right to anyone that has no idea how it got that way. Fill it with water and you won't see it, the haze go's away until you emptyed it again and let it dry out.

 

[nomifyle]

I use pink Himalayian salt for any salt that goes in my body, for DH also. I use it for leg cramps in the night, get up put some in the palm of my hand, lick it off and go right back to sleep. I've never been a salt eater until now, I put it on everything, Even delicious on watermelon and I would never have done that in the past. I have regular store bought salt but I'm not sure what I would use it for. I do not believe that all salt is created equal. I'm 71 and have good health.

Judy

 

[Marthanoir]

I know a salt foodie, makes all his own flavoured sea salts,
He won't touch Himalayan Salt, far too many toxic minerals in it, even in relatively low levels he doesn't want to be putting uranium into his body,

 

[20Gauge]

I know a salt foodie, makes all his own flavoured sea salts,
He won't touch Himalayan Salt, far too many toxic minerals in it, even in relatively low levels he doesn't want to be putting uranium into his body,

OK. That's something I hadn't realized. Good to know.

 

[Marthanoir]

 

[Marthanoir]

OK. That's something I hadn't realized. Good to know.

Spectral analysis below of all the elements & minerals,
There's some good info on the net

 

[China Connection]

Ah, salt....

One can buy different grades of minerals. Pharmaceutical is as far as I know the best.

Most of us are overdosing on our sodium intake. Our bodies hang on to Sodium but not potassium. We need a balance and sea salt will not fix this. However unprocessed sea salt is great for trace minerals. Better still saltwater brine is better.

A top grade hydroponic salt mix for plant growth is more to what we need. Most seed/grain provide lots of minerals along with green vegetables.

 

[China Connection]

What if you ate uranium?
by Jeff Harder

If you've had a potato lately, you've probably ingested trace amounts of uranium.
If you've had a potato lately, you've probably ingested trace amounts of uranium.
abadonian/lofilolo/ThinkStock/D.Fagan

Scan the periodic table and you'll spot a lot of the same words you'd find on an FDA food label: potassium, iron, calcium. But look on the bottom row, and you'll see something you're more likely to associate with news about nuclear accords than a box of breakfast cereal: uranium. You can't help but wonder — what if you picked up a spoonful and started eating?

Let's back up and take a closer look at atomic number 92. Uranium is a dense, weakly radioactive metal that's naturally found in soil, rock and water. After mining uranium from the ground, experts manipulate its three isotopes to produce depleted and enriched variations; the former is less radioactive and used to make bullets and armor plating, while the latter is used in nuclear weapons and power plants.

But you don't have to work in defense manufacturing or in a place equipped with cooling towers to be exposed to uranium. In fact, eating uranium is one of the most common means of exposure. Crops like potatoes and turnips are among the most uranium-rich foods in our diet, but they aren't the only ones: According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the average person eats 0.07 to 1.1 micrograms of uranium per day [source: EPA].

The good news is you don't have to abstain from root vegetables anytime soon. That daily uranium consumption isn't nearly enough to be harmful, especially since your body has a hard time absorbing uranium as it is [source: Keith et al]. Between 95 and 99 percent of the uranium you ingest is excreted in feces, and you urinate 70 percent of the rest within 24 hours [source: ATSDR]. A small amount of uranium will stay in your bones anywhere from months to years after ingestion, but eating uranium is much less toxic than inhaling it.

But what if, instead of being a trace element in the food on your plate, uranium is the main course? You might not be surprised to learn that eating large doses of a radioactive substance leads to an increased chance of developing a cancer. But long-term concerns about radiation exposure pale in comparison to the immediate effects of chemical toxicity. Uranium mainly targets the kidneys: Damage starts to appear after taking in 25 milligrams, while intakes of more than 50 milligrams can cause renal failure and death [source: Argonne National Laboratory]. Additionally, studies of rats that ingest uranium over long periods of time have shown changes in brain chemistry [source: ATSDR].

Fortunately, while there's plenty of reason to believe uranium is lethal in high doses, there are no known human deaths from "oral exposure" to uranium [source: Keith et al]. Still, instead of eating the kind of yellowcake that's made with uranium ore, you're better off sticking with the kind of cake you top with chocolate frosting.

https://science.howstuffworks.com/science-vs-myth/what-if/what-if-ate-uranium.htm

 

[China Connection]

Potassium and sodium out of balance
Published: April, 2009

Too little potassium and too much sodium is bad for the heart and general health.

Potassium and sodium. In the pantheon of classic partners, they aren't quite up there with Abbott and Costello, Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, and John, George, Paul, and Ringo. They should be. Potassium and sodium together play a huge role in regulating blood pressure, and mounting evidence shows they are intimately involved in bone health.

Research and dietary recommendations tend to focus on one or the other, usually sodium. That's a mistake, since these two elements go hand in hand. And the huge imbalance of this duo in the average American diet requires action on two fronts: getting more potassium and less sodium.
Dynamic duo

Potassium and sodium are essential for life. Molecular pumps that pull potassium into cells and push sodium out create a chemical battery that drives the transmission of signals along nerves and powers the contraction of muscles. Potassium and sodium help the kidneys work properly. They are important for energy production and fluid balance. And researchers are beginning to tease out their roles in bone health.

Thousands of years ago, when humans roamed the earth gathering and hunting, potassium was abundant, while sodium was scarce. The so-called Paleolithic diet delivered about 11,000 milligrams (mg) of potassium a day, much of it from fruits, vegetables, leaves, flowers, roots, and other plant sources, but well under 700 mg of sodium. The scarcity of sodium is reflected in the human body's marvelous ability to hold onto this substance.

Today, sodium is easy to come by, inexpensive, and abundant in our diets. The average American consumes between one and three teaspoons of salt a day, or somewhere between 2,500 and 7,500 mg of sodium, much of it hidden in processed or prepared foods. That's far more than the scant 200 mg a day the body needs. It's a different story for potassium. We average 2,500 mg a day, about half of the 4,700 mg minimum recommended for adults.

In healthy individuals, the kidneys respond to excess sodium by flushing it out in the urine. Unfortunately, this also removes potassium. If potassium levels are low, the body tries to hoard it, which also means hanging onto sodium. Water follows sodium, leading to an increase in the amount of water in the body and the volume of blood in circulation. Blood pressure climbs, and the heart must work harder. Excess sodium blunts the ability of blood vessels to relax and contract with ease, and may also overstimulate the growth of heart tissue. All of these responses are made worse by low potassium intake.

In some people, especially those with high blood pressure, heart failure, or impaired kidney function, the kidneys hang onto sodium no matter what, further complicating the picture.

One way to flush sodium out of the body is by getting more potassium. An interesting report from the Trials of Hypertension Prevention suggests that changing the balance between these two minerals can help the heart and arteries.

In this two-part trial, conducted in the 1980s and 1990s, researchers measured the amounts of sodium and potassium that were excreted over the course of 24 hours by nearly 3,000 volunteers. (The amount excreted is a good stand-in for the amount consumed.) The researchers found that the higher the ratio of sodium to potassium, the greater the chance of having a heart attack or stroke, needing bypass surgery or angioplasty, or dying of cardiovascular disease over 10 to 15 years of follow-up (Archives of Internal Medicine, Jan. 12, 2009).

"Our study suggests that just lowering sodium, or just raising potassium, won't be nearly as effective for fighting hypertension or heart disease as doing both together," says lead researcher Nancy Cook, a biostatistician at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital.

Food


Amount


Potassium (mg)


Sodium (mg)


Potassium : sodium ratio

Banana, raw


1 medium


422


1


422:1

Black beans, cooked without salt


½ cup


305


1


305:1

Orange


1 medium


232


1


232:1

Orange juice


¾ cup


357


2


178:1

Grapefruit juice


¾ cup


252


2


126:1

Peanuts, dry roasted, no salt


1½ ounces


280


3


93:1

Peanuts, dry roasted, with salt


1½ ounces


280


346


0.8:1

Avocado


½ medium


487


7


69:1

Raisins


½ cup


543


8


68:1

Prune juice


¾ cup


530


8


66:1

Baked potato, plain, with skin


1 medium


926


17


54:1

Fast-food French fries


1 medium order


655


266


2.5:1

Peanut butter, without salt


2 tablespoons


208


5


42:1

Peanut butter, with salt


2 tablespoons


208


147


1.4:1

Brussels sprouts, steamed


½ cup


248


7


35:1

Applesauce (jar), no salt


½ cup


92


3


31:1

Applesauce (jar), with salt


½ cup


78


36


2.2:1

Oatmeal, regular


1 cup


164


9


18:1

Quaker's Instant Oatmeal


1 packet


116


249


0.5:1

Cantaloupe


¼ medium


368


22


17:1

Halibut, baked


3 ounces


490


59


8:1

Spinach, boiled


½ cup


420


63


7:1

Salmon, baked


3 ounces


244


39


6:1

Salmon, canned


3½ ounces


311


399


0.8:1

V8, low-sodium


1 cup


820


140


6:1

V8, regular


1 cup


470


480


1:1

Carrots, raw


½ cup


205


44


5:1

Beet greens


½ cup


655


173


4:1

Milk, 1%


1 cup


366


107


3:1

Cheerios


1 cup


171


186


0.9:1

Marinara sauce, prepared


½ cup


406


527


0.8:1

Pork and beans, canned


1 cup


726


1075


0.7:1

Fast-food cheeseburger


1 regular


444


1176


0.4:1

French bread


1 medium slice


82


416


0.2:1

Cornflakes


1 cup


33


266


0.1:1

Source: USDA National Nutrient Database
Salt and bones

Most of the focus on sodium and potassium centers on their effects on the kidneys, blood vessels, and heart. But these minerals affect every part of the body, including the relentless breakdown and buildup of bone. A diet high in sodium increases the amount of calcium excreted in the urine. This loss is especially prominent when calcium intake is low, as it is for so many Americans. Loss of calcium can contribute to osteoporosis, the age-related weakening of bones.

One way to combat the problem is by taking in more calcium from food or supplements. Getting more potassium, in the range of the recommended 4,700 mg a day, can also help.

To be sure, there is more to bone health than sodium and potassium. Heredity, lack of exercise, hormone levels (low testosterone in men, low estrogen in women), and a dearth of vitamin D and vitamin K can also weaken bones. But it's good to know that a positive change made for your heart is doing good things elsewhere in the body.
Supershots for potassium?

Food companies continue to blur the boundary between food and medicine. An early entry, a margarine-like spread called Benecol, contains sterol esters derived from vegetable oil or wood pulp that help lower cholesterol. One of the latest entries is Promise Supershots for blood pressure. Each three-ounce bottle delivers 350 milligrams (mg) of potassium, with just a hint of sodium (20 mg) and a few calories (45). According to its maker, Unilever, this fruit-based drink is a good source of potassium for controlling blood pressure.

All true. But at $3.99 for a pack of four "shots," it's a pricey way to get just 7% of the daily recommended target for potassium. Ounce for ounce, it costs more than a medium (okay, Grande) latte at Starbucks which, by the way, has more potassium than a Supershot. And you can get more potassium from a banana or some raisins, which also give you fiber and a host of other nutrients.

For most people, more potassium and less sodium is good for health. If you aren't inclined to eat fruit or vegetables, then a daily Supershot might help. But you'll get more from eating potassium-rich foods, for less out of your pocket.
A diet for the ages

Our Stone Age ancestors consumed about 16 times more potassium than sodium. Modern tribes of hunter-gatherers have similarly high ratios. That's a far cry from the average American diet, which has about twice as much sodium as potassium. In a typical example — bacon, eggs, and tomato juice for breakfast; a ham sandwich and a soda for lunch; a bag of tortilla chips for a snack; and fettuccine alfredo, canned green beans, and garlic bread for dinner — there are 1,600 mg of potassium and 4,100 mg of sodium, for a ratio of 0.4 to 1.

One way to prevent or fight high blood pressure and keep the heart healthy is to boost the amount of potassium you get while at the same time reducing your sodium intake. (Note: Check with your doctor before boosting your intake of potassium. Although it's a good strategy for many, it can be harmful to people with kidney disease or heart failure, or those who are taking certain kinds of diuretics, or "water pills.")

The best way to get more potassium and less sodium is by eating more fresh fruits and vegetables, beans, fish, homemade foods, and low-salt versions of prepared foods. You can top the 4,700-milligram mark for potassium and stay under 800 mg of sodium by having regular oatmeal, orange juice, and coffee for breakfast; a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and milk for lunch; baked halibut, a baked potato with the skin, and a spinach salad with half an avocado for dinner; and some peanuts, raisins, a banana, and low-sodium V8 in between. The potassium-to-sodium ratio of this menu is 14 to 1.

Add in some exercise and, though you aren't living like people in the Stone Age, you might have arteries as healthy as they had.


https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/Potassium_and_sodium_out_of_balance

 

[Old Gray Mare]

If you change brands of salt you may want to taste a little on the tip of your finger. I've noticed there can be a significant change in the saltyness. If you use the same amount you always do the dish may end up to salty to enjoy.

 

[ivantherussian03]

Salt is handy for tanning fur and as ice melt, or roughing up an icy surface till the next snow falls. It also handy for smoking and preserving meat. A lot of uses.

 

[Old Gray Mare]

It can be important to read the label. Not all salt is well, all salt. Some commercially sold salt contains things like coloring agents and anti caking agents.

 

[Siskiyoumom]

Thank you everyone for your informative replies!

 

[ivantherussian03]

It can be important to read the label. Not all salt is well, all salt. Some commercially sold salt contains things like coloring agents and anti caking agents.

Yes, there are types of salt and they have specific uses.

 

[Illini Warrior]

salt that doesn't come up usually - livestock salt blocks - not legal to hunt over during regular times but they can be labor/time saver for SHTFs - if game is scarce it could guarantee some meat on the table ....

 

[ainitfunny]

Morton Salt Substitute is a sodium-free product designed for people on a doctor-recommended, sodium restricted diet.

Serving Size: 0.25 tsp
Serving Per Container: 63
Amount Per Serving
% Daily Value*
Potassium 690mg20%
Protein 0g
Sodium 0mg0%
Total Carb. 0g0%
Total Fat 0g0%
* Percentage of Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Ingredients:
POTASSIUM CHLORIDE, FUMARIC ACID, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE AND SILICON DIOXIDE.

Supplement Facts
Serving Size 1/4 Teaspoon
Servings Per Container 239
Amount Per Serving % DV
Calories 0
border=0
Total Fat 0g 0%
border=0
Cholesterol 0g 0%
border=0
Sodium 0mg 0%
border=0
Potassium 650mg 19%
border=0
Total Carb. 0g 0%
border=0
Protein 0g 0%
*Percent Daily Values (DV) are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Other Ingredients:

Potassium Chloride, Potassium Bitartrate, Adipic Acid, Silicon Dioxide, Mineral Oil and Fumaric Acid.

 

[1eagle]

It can be important to read the label. Not all salt is well, all salt. Some commercially sold salt contains things like coloring agents and anti caking agents.

+ + + And dextrose, which = sugar! Especially those individual serving size packets of salt.
Lawry's Seasoned Salt, second ingredient is sugar!

 

[Old Gray Mare]

salt that doesn't come up usually - livestock salt blocks - not legal to hunt over during regular times but they can be labor/time saver for SHTFs - if game is scarce it could guarantee some meat on the table ....

May just be a coincidence but happened to come across talk of an mineralized chunk of salt block found out in the woods. It'd had been licked into the shape of a piece of modern art by the deer.

Locally sold mineralized salt blocks for livestock are brownish red in color. The big ones are heavier than I'd want to schlep into the woods. They do come in smaller sizes.

They blend in real well with local the local shale and red clay soil. Dropped on a forest floor you would probably have to know where it was to find it if the critters don't beat a trail to it or mess up the ground around it. If they do become too obvious, the block or whatever is left of it can be picked up and moved. They can be bought for a few dollars at area feed mills.

Warning: I stored a big block of white salt in a feed bag in a barn (forgot about it) and it fell apart. The salt was still usable for the livestock.

 

[Profit of Doom]

Regarding the uranium, that test showed arsenic levels of ~10 times higher. I’m not worrying about the uranium.

 

[Profit of Doom]

All salts are created equal, but some salts are more equal than others.

 

[naturallysweet]

I bought that glass jar with the pink salt and cork. Works just fine in my salt shakers. Plus, I love the container.

 

[Profit of Doom]

Since we’re on salt and the various types, once again is my Oral Rehydration Solution recipe, for fluid loss from cholera, diahhorrea, nausea, whatever. Drink as much as will be accepted, at least as much as lost fluids

ORS
6 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon Lite salt (50/50 sodium/potassium chloride)
NOTE: This is not the -no salt- substitutes from post #18 above. You need the sodium and potassium. You could use 1/2 teaspoon each regular salt and no-salt. I am stocking up just the Lite salt in my preps.
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (not baking powder)
1 quart water
The sugar is a necessary component, do not remove/reduce it.
This gives more of the necessary electrolytes than just sodium chloride (salt) and sugar.
You can flavor it with unsweetened koolaid, just enough to make it palatable.

 

[Babs]

Since we’re on salt and the various types, once again is my Oral Rehydration Solution recipe, for fluid loss from cholera, diahhorrea, nausea, whatever. Drink as much as will be accepted, at least as much as lost fluids

ORS
6 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon Lite salt (50/50 sodium/potassium chloride)
NOTE: This is not the -no salt- substitutes from post #18 above. You need the sodium and potassium. You could use 1/2 teaspoon each regular salt and no-salt. I am stocking up just the Lite salt in my preps.
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (not baking powder)
1 quart water
The sugar is a necessary component, do not remove/reduce it.
This gives more of the necessary electrolytes than just sodium chloride (salt) and sugar.
You can flavor it with unsweetened koolaid, just enough to make it palatable.

Thank you! I went looking for this awhile back and couldn't find it. I couldn't remember who posted it.

 

[Profit of Doom]

Well, now you know it’s here, and it’s also in my Dems screwup thread. To find it, go to my profile and look in threads I have started, it should stay near the top. Other useful threads in there as well.

 

[Old Gray Mare]

You can flavor it with unsweetened koolaid, just enough to make it palatable.

Flavored Jello?

 

[Profit of Doom]

Flavored Jello?

Interesting idea, had not thought of that.
Would not start with that, don’t wait for it to set up, need fluids started right now.
Why not try it now and find out if it gels and how it tastes?
You need to figger the formula using the sugar in the jello, let us know how it works out.
My koolaid thought had been using those little tubes for a 16 oz bottle, but in a quart as per the formula.