The most indispensable condiment in the kitchen is salt. Without it, the dishes will become tasteless.
But the troublesome thing is: there are too many types of salt on the market. Various salts occupy a full shelf, and the prices vary, such asSea salt, mine salt, bamboo salt, lake salt, rose salt, calcium salt, selenium-rich salt…
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Some only cost two or three yuan per pack, while others cost tens of yuan. What is the difference between them? Is expensive salt more worth eating?
Why do people eat salt?
Eating salt is not only to make the dishes more delicious, but also for good health, becauseThe sodium ions in salt are important players in maintaining human life activities.
Sodium has important functions such as regulating the volume and osmotic pressure of human extracellular fluid, maintaining the acid-base balance of body fluids, maintaining normal blood pressure, and participating in body energy metabolism.
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Maintaining a certain concentration and appropriate ratio of sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium and other ions in body fluids is necessary to maintain neuromuscular stress, and the normal concentration of sodium is an important factor in ensuring this function.
Although sodium is widely present in food, except for some aquatic foods, the sodium content in most other natural foods is not high, so it is difficult to meet the body’s demand for sodium by eating natural foods alone (the appropriate intake of sodium is 1500 mg/day), eating salt appropriately can help us supplement enough sodium.
If sodium intake is insufficient, it will affect the body's normal physiological functions and cause hyponatremia.
Mild sodium deficiency can cause apathy, fatigue, and lack of energy. Mild sodium deficiency can cause nausea, vomiting, lowered blood pressure, and convulsions. Severe cases can lead to shock or even death.
In particular, people who sweat a lot in high-temperature jobs, heavy physical workers, and patients with gastrointestinal diseases who suffer from repeated vomiting or diarrhea should pay more attention to sodium supplementation.
What are the differences between different salts?
Nowadays, when you go to the supermarket to buy salt, you can see all kinds of salt. What was once a simple matter of “buying a pack of salt” suddenly makes people have a phobia of choice.
1. Salt from different sources
Well mine salt, lake salt, sea salt, these salts just come from different sources. They are all essentially sodium chloride, and there is not much difference.
– Mine salt
Salt made from rock salt or underground brine (excluding underground brine in coastal areas).
Geologically speaking, places with mine salt were almost all seas in ancient times. After historical changes, under the action of the scorching sun, strong winds and evaporation for many years, the sea water dried up, and the salt continued to precipitate, forming layers of salt caps. , was later covered and buried by silt, and was buried underground with the violent movement of the earth's crust.
Because it has been “isolated” for too long, the processed sodium chloride has high purity, few impurities, and is relatively pure. It is relatively common on the market, and the cheapest one costs only 2 yuan per pack.
– Lake salt (pool salt)
Lake salt is salt directly mined from salt lakes and salt that is dried in salt fields using salt lake brine as raw material. my country is one of the few countries in the world with extremely rich lake salt mineral resources.
Lake salt particles are larger and not easy to agglomerate, so the product basically does not need to use anti-caking agents.
– sea salt
Edible sea salt is made from sea water or sea salt as raw material; sun-dried sea salt is edible sea salt made by concentrating and crystallizing sun-dried sea water.
Refined sea salt is edible sea salt made from seawater or sea salt as raw material through vacuum evaporation salt making process, mechanical thermal compression evaporation salt making process or crushing, washing and drying process.
Snowflake sea salt is a snowflake-shaped edible sea salt made from sea salt through processes such as dissolution, filtration, evaporation, crystallization and drying.
Fensea salt is not easy to clump, and the product must not contain anti-caking agents, and no potassium ferrocyanide/sodium ferrocyanide is added. Additionally, the purity of sodium chloride in sea salt is relatively low.
2. “High-grade salt” on the market
Bamboo salt and Himalayan rose salt feel very high-end. Their essence is to supplement sodium chloride, but the flavor and appearance are slightly different from ordinary salt.
– Bamboo salt
Ordinary bamboo salt is made from table salt as raw material, which is poured into fresh bamboo tubes once (or multiple times), sealed with loess, and fired at high temperature.
Nine-roasted molten bamboo salt is made from table salt as raw material, with or without the food additive potassium chloride. It is poured into fresh bamboo tubes eight times, sealed with loess, and fired at high temperatures. The salt is formed by melting it at high temperatures during the ninth firing. .
Bamboo salt is white, off-white or purple-brown in color. It has a salty taste and also has a fresh or preserved egg taste. The price of a 250g pack of bamboo salt is mostly between 7 and 10 yuan.
– Himalayan rose salt
It is a type of rock salt. It is said to be mined near the Himalayas in Pakistan. The natural pink color comes from the iron element in it. It has a high appearance and a high price.The price for 250 grams is nearly 20 yuan.
The iron content of this kind of salt may be higher than that of the salt we usually eat, but don’t expect to supplement iron, as it generally does not contain iodine.
3.Nutritional fortified salt
In addition to the iodized salt we eat daily, there are also some salts that have been nutritionally fortified, such as calcium salt and selenium-enriched salt. Many people mistakenly believe that “eating such salt is more nutritious.”
The recommended intake of calcium and selenium for ordinary adults in my country is 800 mg/day and 60 μg/day respectively, and these “nutrient salts” play a very small role in nutritional supplementation.
We eat salt mainly for seasoning and to supplement sodium. The “Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents” recommends that each person eat up to 5 grams of salt per day. According to this amount, the maximum intake can only be 7.5 milligrams of calcium or 0.75 micrograms of selenium, which is far from the recommended amount. The effect is minimal.
If you eat salt just to take in these so-called “nutrients”, you will lose more than you gain!
A certain brand of calcium salt
A certain brand of selenium-rich salt
When eating salt, choose the right one, not the expensive one
For our average family, when buying salt, it is recommended to pay attention to the sodium content and iodine content of the salt before purchasing.
1. Low sodium salt
Low-sodium salt uses part of potassium chloride instead of sodium chloride. The saltiness is almost the same as that of ordinary table salt, and cooking does not affect the taste. If you have cardiovascular disease or high blood pressure, choosing low-sodium salt wisely can help lower your blood pressure. However, those who work at high temperatures, those who do heavy manual labor, some people with kidney disease, and those with uremia should be careful about consuming low-sodium salt.
2. Iodized salt
Iodine is an essential trace element for the human body and an important raw material for the synthesis of thyroid hormones. It can maintain human health. The main purpose of consuming iodized salt is to prevent goiter caused by iodine deficiency.
A certain brand of iodized salt
Most areas in our country are almost iodine-deficient, especially in mountainous areas, hills, river valleys, desertification areas and river washout areas where iodine deficiency is more serious. In iodine deficient areas, it is necessary to eat iodized salt.
Even if you live in coastal areas, you still need to eat iodized salt.
Although kelp, seaweed and other foods in coastal areas are rich in iodine, if local residents consume less frequently and in lower amounts, they still need to eat iodized salt to supplement the recommended amount. However,For residents living in areas with high water-borne iodine, it is recommended to eat iodized salt.
In addition, patients with hyperthyroidism and some patients with thyroid tumors are also suitable to eat iodized salt. But not all thyroid diseases require eating iodized salt. You have to follow your doctor's advice based on your own situation.
You should eat salt, but it must be limited!
Eating salt is necessary to maintain health, but the more you eat, the better.Both the World Health Organization and the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents recommend controlling salt intake to no more than 5 grams per day.
5 grams of salt spread out, the diameter is slightly larger than a 1 yuan coin丨Photographed by the author
This is because the harm caused by a high-salt diet cannot be underestimated and can cause a series of health problems in the body. It not only induces high blood pressure, but also stimulates the body's inflammatory response, even increases the risk of osteoporosis, stroke, and gastritis, and may also affect cognitive ability.
In addition to controlling salt intake,You should also pay attention to invisible salt in your life, such as soy sauce, oyster sauce, steamed fish soy sauce, soybean paste, miso, pickles, kimchi, etc.
The method for calculating salt content is: sodium content in the nutrition facts table (mg) ÷ 400 = salt content (g)
There are many types of salt, and there is no need to pursue “high-end” and “nutritive” ones. For ordinary people, we only need to choose low-sodium salt, iodized salt, etc. according to personal needs.
No matter what kind of salt you eat, you must control your salt intake and eat lightly.
references
[1]Chinese Nutrition Society. Reference intake of dietary nutrients for Chinese residents (2023 edition)[M].People's Medical Publishing House.2023.8
[2]Zhuzhou Municipal Market Supervision and Administration Bureau. Where does table salt come from? How is salt made?[EB/OL].(2021-07-02)[2024-4-29]http://scjgj.zhuzhou.gov.cn/c13764/20210707/i1723747.html
[3]T/HBFIA 0022-2021 Edible sea salt[S].2021.06.28
[4]QB/T 5682-2022 Bamboo Salt[S]. 2022.04.08
[5]Chinese Medical Association Endocrinology Branch, Chinese Nutrition Society, Chinese Medical Association Endocrinology Branch. Guidelines for iodine supplementation for Chinese residents[R].2018:5
Editor in charge: Shang Shangwen Q