Table Salt versus Sea Salt

Is there a difference?  Is one better than the other?

Table salt is mined from underground rock salt deposits, then dried in kilns in temperatures reaching 1200 degrees Fahrenheit.  This removes any impurities or nutrients, leaving pure sodium chloride.  Iodine in then added with an anti-caking agent, one of about 20 different chemicals.  The most common anti-caking agent is sodium aluminosilicate.  Then, the salt is bleached to make it white.

Sea salt is derived from oceans or salinated lakes and dried in the sun.  Trace minerals are not removed.  Natural whole sea salt contains about 80 minerals (potassium, magnesium, calcium, iodine, etc.).  It is these minerals that give sea salt their color (pink, grey, black) and distinct flavor.  There is minimal processing and no addition of anything into sea salt.

What about sodium?  Every article I’ve read has stated that sea salt and table salt have the SAME AMOUNT of sodium per weight.  That’s weight, not volume.  1 teaspoon of table salt is a heavier weight than 1 teaspoon of sea salt due to larger size of the crystals of sea salt.  If you’re using a volume measurement (i.e., 1/2 teaspoon), you will get more sodium from table salt than from the same volume of sea salt.

Many people in the world of natural health and medicine believe that minerals contained naturally in our foods (not added to them) are better absorbed and utilized by the body.  Some of the articles state the minerals found in sea salt are key players in enzyme production, immune system, adrenal gland and thyroid gland function.

Any time I’m about to ingest chemicals, it gives me pause.  I have some concerns about these anti-caking agents.  The label simply says “anti-caking agent” so one doesn’t know which chemical is actually added into the salt.  Although the association between aluminum and dementia has largely been de-bunked, I’m not certain any aluminum is safe to be ingested.  Some of the other anti-caking agents have equally scary names, like calcium ferrocyanide.  Cyanide?  When I can, I avoid ingredients that I can’t pronounce.  I believe in the philosophy that if it’s hard to get the word out of my mouth, I shouldn’t be putting it IN my mouth.

Most articles that I read from the conventional medical world recommended that you base your decision on flavor, not because of any potential health benefits of one versus the other.

So what does Karole think?  

This quote sums it up: The typical refined table salt can be compared to refined sugar and refined flour—it used to be a healthful, whole food, but our industrial food system has stripped and processed it into a disaster waiting to happen.

The medical community (which I am part of) is required to say to consume less than 2300 mg of sodium per day, so there, I’ve said it.  If you are one of the small minority whose blood pressure responds to salt intake, you want to be careful with it.  But I don’t think we need to be a salt avoidant society, as long as we’re using food in its natural form as much as possible. I can’t avoid all table salt in my life, especially if I eat at a restaurant or grab a quick something at the deli.  But when I’m cooking at home, I use Celtic Sea Salt or Himalayan Sea Salt for my cooking, baking, and to taste at the table.  To me, there is a distinct flavor difference.  I actually don’t like the taste of table salt, but I really do like Celtic Sea Salt sprinkled on my food.  And if I’m providing my body with natural sources of trace minerals that it needs, that makes it taste even better!