Is all sodium/salt created equally?

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TluvK
TluvK Posts: 733 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I recently found out that I have very low blood pressure - my Dr. suggested I add more salt to my diet. In fact, he told me to consume about double the recommended sodium intake. So, obviously, I've been thinking a lot about salt.

I recently read an article that said there are new studies coming out showing that salt is not the villain that we've all been conditioned to believe it is since the USDA lowered our recommended levels by nearly half last year.

I eat pretty clean, not really THAT purposely, but I do tend to avoid processed foods and don't enjoy fast food. So, my question is: How does adding table salt to my home-cooked meals compare to the salt that is added to a processed piece of meat at a fast food restaurant? Are they the same? Is salt, salt??

For someone who has to watch their sodium intake, can they just avoid processed foods/fast foods but continue to use table salt?
I'm just curious, because I find salt/sodium is a big issue on MFP and it seems most people are trying to avoid it. I'm obviously in a fairly unique position, not having to worry about it, except that I need to figure out how to add more salt, which is harder than you might think!

Replies

  • glypta
    glypta Posts: 440 Member
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    Interesting question! I have no idea, but maybe seafood? It certainly tastes saltier...
  • mamashatzie
    mamashatzie Posts: 238 Member
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    I like salt. I think it makes my food extra tasty. I avoid processed foods because of the high sodium content...but I have no problem adding fresh-ground sea salt into my meal.

    Just a guess, but the sodium in highly processed foods is probably bad for you anyway. Whereas table salt in moderation is fine.

    But I'm no expert :)
  • TigressStripes
    TigressStripes Posts: 33 Member
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    No real answers from me, but more food for thoughts.

    I'd always heard that sea salt was better for you than regular table salt. I bought one of those tubs (the ones you use for filling salt shakers) and compared it to the table salt tub I already have. Not a lick of difference according to the labels.

    I'd read elsewhere that as long as your potassium intake exceeds your sodium intake for the day, you should be good, but that drinking lots of water helps flush the salt from your system. Don't know. Not a doctor, or even remotely medicinally inclined, so take what I say with "a grain of salt". (Hah!)
  • sun33082
    sun33082 Posts: 416 Member
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    I'm not sure either, but processed foods and fast foods definitely have much more sodium than you would ever want to add to your food using table salt. It's like they have some way of hiding the taste of the sodium. However I could be wrong about the taste since I really haven't had fast food in months. It may taste horribly salty now :)

    My suggestion on adding salt to your diet would be to eat more cheeses. They are typically pretty high in salt. Cottage cheese is very high (almost 500 mg per 1/2 cup).
  • lawtechie
    lawtechie Posts: 708 Member
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    From what I've read, your body needs 50 mg sodium each day for proper functioning. That's to get your cells the water they need. Beyond that -- to each his own. One treatment for low blood pressure is to increase salt intake. Not all salt is the same; table salt (NaCl) is the common form we eat. 2000 mg is about a teaspoon's worth of salt. If you eat eggs, sprinkle some salt on it. If you eat meats you can season them with salt and pepper.
  • sun33082
    sun33082 Posts: 416 Member
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    chicknlil,

    It's not that Sea Salt heathier for you because it has less sodium, because it doesn't. There are other benefits. However even though it doesn't have less sodium, the thought is that it has more flavor, therefore you use less sea salt than you would regular salt and therefore consume less sodium. I don't know that I've found that to be true, but that's the theory.
  • jackieb79
    jackieb79 Posts: 58
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    I think that the bulk of sodium in our diets comes from the foods we eat, not from adding a few sprinkles of table salt. If you are staying away from processed foods, you might find it hard to get enough sodium from simply adding table salt to your diet. I believe there are also salt pills out there.

    I have heard that table salt is higher in sodium than kosher salt or sea salt which don't taste as salty.
  • gentlebreeze2
    gentlebreeze2 Posts: 450 Member
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    It's not so much just a sodium issue, as it is a sodium/potassium issue. Read this...

    http://health.msn.com/health-topics/osteoporosis/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100238578&GT1=31038
  • Jill_newimprovedversion
    Jill_newimprovedversion Posts: 988 Member
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    MY understanding of the difference between sea salt and table salt is in the processing- there is LESS man-handling of sea salt (literally)
    I personally DO taste the difference and I prefer sea salt- especially Pink Himalayan ( Pampered Chef find)

    Something to consider- If you begin to ADD salt to your cooking, then you are adding salt to the rest of the family's diet as well, yes?

    You may have a LOW sodium level, but you surely don't want to INcrease theirs.

    My mother NEVER cooked w/ a lot of salt- there was a salt shaker on the table IF we wanted to ADD it
    And I, in turn, cook the same way.

    Later on, I developed High blood pressure- and have to watch my salt intake.
    How very grateful I don't have to "get used to" less- that's a HARD thing to overcome...

    So, perhaps you might want to consider JUST adding it to your own food....
    and keep cooking healthy for yourself and the rest of the family.
  • trod1149
    trod1149 Posts: 6
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    Mornin'....I take meds for blood pressure and my doc told me if your blood pressure is high you probably need to watch your intake. However; salt contains iodide which is a necessary nutrient. You don't need to eliminate salt for no reason. Everything and anything in moderation :0)
  • TluvK
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
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    Mornin'....I take meds for blood pressure and my doc told me if your blood pressure is high you probably need to watch your intake. However; salt contains iodide which is a necessary nutrient. You don't need to eliminate salt for no reason. Everything and anything in moderation :0)

    I actually need to increase my salt because I have low blood pressure. So, I need to go above moderation.
  • TluvK
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
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    MY understanding of the difference between sea salt and table salt is in the processing- there is LESS man-handling of sea salt (literally)
    I personally DO taste the difference and I prefer sea salt- especially Pink Himalayan ( Pampered Chef find)

    Something to consider- If you begin to ADD salt to your cooking, then you are adding salt to the rest of the family's diet as well, yes?

    You may have a LOW sodium level, but you surely don't want to INcrease theirs.

    My mother NEVER cooked w/ a lot of salt- there was a salt shaker on the table IF we wanted to ADD it
    And I, in turn, cook the same way.

    Later on, I developed High blood pressure- and have to watch my salt intake.
    How very grateful I don't have to "get used to" less- that's a HARD thing to overcome...

    So, perhaps you might want to consider JUST adding it to your own food....
    and keep cooking healthy for yourself and the rest of the family.

    Very good point - thanks. I hadn't thought of that.
  • TluvK
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
    Options
    It's not so much just a sodium issue, as it is a sodium/potassium issue. Read this...

    http://health.msn.com/health-topics/osteoporosis/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100238578&GT1=31038

    That is very interesting and after reading the list, I actually consume more potassium than I thought I did. Thanks for the info.
  • TluvK
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
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    I think that the bulk of sodium in our diets comes from the foods we eat, not from adding a few sprinkles of table salt. If you are staying away from processed foods, you might find it hard to get enough sodium from simply adding table salt to your diet. I believe there are also salt pills out there.

    I have heard that table salt is higher in sodium than kosher salt or sea salt which don't taste as salty.

    I've thought about salt pills and may look into them. I do use sea salt quite often and kosher salt, actually - I like the idea of using more of them because they taste less salty.
  • TluvK
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
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    No real answers from me, but more food for thoughts.

    I'd always heard that sea salt was better for you than regular table salt. I bought one of those tubs (the ones you use for filling salt shakers) and compared it to the table salt tub I already have. Not a lick of difference according to the labels.

    I'd read elsewhere that as long as your potassium intake exceeds your sodium intake for the day, you should be good, but that drinking lots of water helps flush the salt from your system. Don't know. Not a doctor, or even remotely medicinally inclined, so take what I say with "a grain of salt". (Hah!)

    Good points - my Dr. also pointed out that water follows sodium, so his point was, no matter how much water I drink, if I don't have high enough sodium levels, then the water is not doing anything for me and I'm just perpetually dehydrated.
  • ceschwartz
    ceschwartz Posts: 240 Member
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    Salt is salt. There is no difference between table salt and the salt in processed foods accept for the fact that you get to control the amount. Kosher salt, I believe, as no added iodine in it. Sea salt is more coarse or is in larger chunks so you theoretical need less to season food. It all boils down to salt is salt. There is no "healthy" version (unless you have iodine problems ).

    As for your doctor recommending more salt...honestly never heard of that, and I have low pressure too. So be careful, and stay healthy!
  • TluvK
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
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    Salt is salt. There is no difference between table salt and the salt in processed foods accept for the fact that you get to control the amount. Kosher salt, I believe, as no added iodine in it. Sea salt is more coarse or is in larger chunks so you theoretical need less to season food. It all boils down to salt is salt. There is no "healthy" version (unless you have iodine problems ).

    As for your doctor recommending more salt...honestly never heard of that, and I have low pressure too. So be careful, and stay healthy!

    Thanks. Also, prescribing salt for low blood pressure is really common and from what i understand, the first thing they start with to get it higher. I'm surprised you hadn't heard that before. Does your low blood pressure affect your life? I was having very frequent dizzy spells.
  • gentlebreeze2
    gentlebreeze2 Posts: 450 Member
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    Salt is salt. There is no difference between table salt and the salt in processed foods accept for the fact that you get to control the amount. Kosher salt, I believe, as no added iodine in it. Sea salt is more coarse or is in larger chunks so you theoretical need less to season food. It all boils down to salt is salt. There is no "healthy" version (unless you have iodine problems ).

    As for your doctor recommending more salt...honestly never heard of that, and I have low pressure too. So be careful, and stay healthy!

    Thanks. Also, prescribing salt for low blood pressure is really common and from what i understand, the first thing they start with to get it higher. I'm surprised you hadn't heard that before. Does your low blood pressure affect your life? I was having very frequent dizzy spells.

    My sister-in-law has also been told to increase her salt for low blood pressure.
  • jjs22
    jjs22 Posts: 156
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    Hi TluvK,

    I just did a googling session last week about salt, after I got a cookbook that kept saying to use kosher salt. Here's a recap.

    Normal table salt and kosher salt are dug from underground mines. The way these deposits were formed tends to expel everything but the salt, so its not like your getting dirt mixed in with it. Sea salt comes from evaporating sea water (duh). Sea salt costs more to produce, so the price is higher. But salt is so cheap, who cares ? There are claims that sea salt has small amounts of other stuff (besides sodium chloride) that are good for you. Could be. Regular salt is just salt.

    Humans absolutely must have a teensy bit of iodine in their diet. Otherwise you get a goiter, which I suppose we could call undesirable weight gain ! Since its hard to make sure everybody gets enough iodine from natural foods, salt producers often add a teensy tiny bit of iodine into their salt. It's always mentioned on the label : iodized or non. Why did they decide to add it to salt ? Well, everybody uses salt. Plus iodine as a chemical is very similar to chlorine; its super simple to replace a few chlorine atoms from normal salt with iodine.

    So what about kosher salt ? It's not that Jewish people can't eat regular table salt ! It's just kind of a misnomer. Technically, it is called koshering salt. It is used in the process of treating meat to make it kosher. So what's the diff ? It comes in bigger grains. Other than that, nothing.

    As far as cooking goes, I just started using it and for some uses it makes a lot of sense. If you are going to put salt into a liquid (soup, boiling pasta, etc.) it makes absolutely no difference. Use whatever is cheapest or on hand. But if you are going to sprinkle/rub salt onto something before cooking, then kosher salt can make it more interesting. I tried it on a salmon fillet that I cooked first in a cast iron grill pan and finished off under the broiler. OMG ! you get these tiny flecks of browned/charred/crunchy salmon and then there are these tiny specks of crunchy salt. So much tastier than some flabby pink piece of steamed/braised fish that you have to cover up with sauce. Mmmm. Getting hungry.....

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