Salt is such an integral part of everything that we eat and it is hard to imagine a time when there will be no salt in food. Modern-day nutritionists may be warning against having too much salt in your diet, but it’s been such a key part of our lives for so long, that it’s racked up quite the history beyond being just a simple kitchen staple. There are so many interesting facts about salt in food that you might not know. Let's look at 10 of these interesting facts.
* Sea Salt and Table Salt are The Same
For the longest time, people have believed that sea salt is healthier than table salt. But most of you might not know that both of these salts have the same amount of sodium. Although sea salt is less processed than table salt, both of the salts have roughly 40% of sodium content. If you are looking for alternatives that have lower sodium levels, then you can try substitutes like garlic, pepper, oregano, sage, rosemary and some other herbs that might be available in the market.
* Cutting on Salt is Food for Blood Pressure
People suffering from hypertension or problems related to cardiovascular health are often told to cut down on salt. But even if you do not have any such problems, it is always a good idea to cut on salt. Having the appropriate quantity of salt in your body is important to maintain your blood pressure levels. This has been suggested by multiple studies, including a 2017 review of 185 studies.
* Cutting Salt is Important For Old People
As per a report by the World Health Organization, people have found improvement in their hypertension after cutting salt out of the diet. Reducing salt from your diet can also help with headaches and lower the risk of migraine-related problems. Having a heavy quantity of salt might trigger headaches among old people.
* Salt can Preserve Food
Before the modern-day, preserving techniques came in, salt was commonly used as a preserving agent to store meat and vegetables. Even today a lot of people use salt to preserve food at home without using any chemicals. This is one of the reasons why salt was one of the most valuable things in the world back in the 12th and 13th centuries. Indian Council of Medical Research has also specified the ways to use salt in the preservation of food. In fact in Rome salt was so popular and valuable that during a particular period, soldiers were paid in terms of salt for their services.
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* Salt Helps in Muscle Work
All the high levels of sodium present in salt can be harmful to our health if consumed in more than prescribed quantities, having the required amount of salt is important for the health of our body. Salt helps in the transportation of nutrients and oxygen in our blood. It also helps in muscle work and allows nerves to transmit messages from one end to the other.
* Iodized Salt
In the mid-1960s, India started its fight against Goitre by introducing the idea of iodised salt. Goitre is a thyroid-related disease which is caused by the deficiency of iodine. By iodising salt, the government wanted to ensure that all the citizens of the country consumed enough quantities of iodine as salt is a staple part of the diet of all Indians.
* Salt Types
Most people use only the conventional types of salt, including table salt and sea salt. But other than these common varieties of salt, there are many types of salts that one can use. Each of these salts has its flavours and textures. Some of the salts or Himalayan Salt, black salt and Kosher Salt.
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* Used in Making Medicines
Other than being a flavouring agent in the food that we eat, salt is also a very famous ingredient in the world of chemistry. The chemical name of salt is NaCl or Sodium Chloride and it is used in innumerable chemical processes and manufacturing of medicines.
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* Salt Mining
Most people believe that the only way to get salt is by harvesting it from the ocean. But to your surprise salt is also extracted from underground sources. Some of these sources are as old as 7000 years old like the one in Hallstatt, Austria. Some kinds of salt are also harvested from mountains and caves.
* Balancing Blood Sugar Levels
Salt is also very beneficial in balancing blood sugar levels in the body. People suffering from diabetes must very carefully analyse their salt intake to avoid any health-related problems. Salt is also very important for the generation of hydroelectric cells in the body that are used for local power generation.
All of these are some interesting facts about salt that you might not have known earlier. Salt is a very important part of our diet and it is very important to navigate the right way to inculcate it in our everyday dishes to make sure that we do not go over the board and yet maintain our necessary intake.