Sea salt versus normal table salt

Do you guys think that sea salt is "less bad for you" than is regular table salt?

I need to make my salt addiction as healthy as possible, short of cutting it out altogether. I LOVE salt -- it is hard for me to enjoy foods that dont have lots of salt on them.

So do you think sea salt is better for you? why or why not?

thanks for your opinions.

if you don't have enough iodine in your diet it's worse for you.

I agree with Jza. I dont focus on salt intake. If something has no salt I go for whatever ive got. I have regular salt, bragg's sauce, garlic salt, sea salt. I try not to use too much salt though, bragg's sauce I can practically drink though. I love that stuff! Sea Salt has minerals in it so I use it when I feel like it.

I loved salt. Then I had kidney stones.

I retain less water now.

Since I'm off salt.

(mostly)

if you don't have enough iodine in your diet it's worse for you.

Iodine is a concern for vegans. Iodized salt has been demonized by the health food industry, but it could be a good source of iodine for us.

Iodine Deficiency Reported in Vegetarians and Vegans

Michael Greger, M.D.

http://www.veganMD.org

 

Last month [Oct 2003], yet another article appeared on iodine deficiency in vegetarians and vegans [1]. Quoting from the paper: "One fourth of the vegetarians and 80% of the vegans suffer from iodine deficiency..." Only 9% of the meateaters were deficient. The milk drinkers were protected in part because iodine containing disinfectants are used to clean the milk processing equipment which kind of leach into the milk. None of the vegetarians and vegans were eating sea vegetables. And none were using iodized salt--they were all using "natural" sea salt, which has significantly less iodine. Iodine deficiency was actually a prevalent problem in the U.S. before the iodization of salt became a common practice in the 1920's.[2]

 

So, vegetarians who don't eat sea vegetables or use iodized salt should consider supplementing their diet with iodine. I don't encourage people to add salt to their diet--it's not good for your bones--but if you do use table salt, use iodized salt. For more information, see the British Vegan Society's iodine page. The best source, though, is sea vegetables (seaweed).

 

Sea vegetables have lots of B vitamins and lots of minerals, particularly the trace minerals, like iodine. The only problem with seaweed is that you can actually get too much iodine. The World Health Organization places the safe upper limit of iodine intake at 1000 mcg per day. And it's less for kids-like 300 mcg may be too much for a five year old. See my handout on nutrients for the amounts found in common seaweeds.

 

References:

 

[1] Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism 47(2003):183

 

[2] Journal of the American Dietetics Association 79(1981):17.

When I first became vegan I started craving two things; almonds (I thought it was for the protein) and tomato soup. Later I discussed this with a trainer and she told me it was for the salt.

Right on, now I have at least some defense for my copious salt intake

Iodine deficiency is a nasty thing when it's severe. I believe it's India that has a particularly bad problem with this, and it leads to horrible deformations and skeletal/muscular problems, all sorts of bad things. I remember seeing a show on it in a class a long time ago.

I can't believe it's considered beneficial that a cleaning chemical is 'leeched' into milk that people drink. Even if it's 'just' iodine, that is GROSS.

Iodine deficiency is a nasty thing when it's severe. I believe it's India that has a particularly bad problem with this, and it leads to horrible deformations and skeletal/muscular problems, all sorts of bad things.

any inland third world area has problems with it.

Most noticeably it leads to goiter, which is a thyroid problem..

http://www.phoenity.com/diseases/images/thyroid_enlargement.jpg

http://www.cushings-help.com/goiter.gif

I usually use Mrs. Dash instead of salt

Good stuff Mike. Ty.