Sea salt is sea salt which is created by the evaporation process of seawater. It’s used as a natural seasoning in many foods, baking, cooking and even for preserving food. It’s also known as black sea salt or solar salt. Like other mined salts, production of sea salt is dated back to prehistoric times.
While I don’t particularly like the taste, I do recognize the value of ingesting a little bit of this salty treat on a daily basis. This is especially true if you are trying to lose weight. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, a two-grams increase in sodium intake increases blood pressure by about seven milligrams. That amount is the equivalent of one or two drinks of regular soda.
So what does this have to do with minerals? Well, research has shown that sea salt contains some very important trace amounts of vital nutrients. These minerals are necessary for your body’s health, but only in trace amounts. Too much of any nutrient can actually be toxic to your body. So it’s important to know which minerals are found in sea salt and to limit your consumption of these trace amounts.
One of the trace minerals found in sea salt is potassium. Potassium is responsible for maintaining your muscle tissue. In fact, muscles are essentially water, and if you deprive your body of water (and the other electrolytes that are needed), then your muscles will die. Potassium is found in several trace elements which are found in sea water, including magnesium, calcium, sodium and potassium.
Another mineral that you might not have learned about is sodium chloride. The concentration level of sodium chloride in sea salt is not as high as that in table salt, yet it still plays an important role in maintaining proper hydration. Sea salt is much healthier than table salt because it dissolves in water faster and keeps its nutritional benefits intact.
While many people believe that sea salt causes indigestion and heartburn, the lack of scientific evidence to support this claim is reason enough to avoid it. People who live on a coastal area have long been aware of the healing properties associated with salt water. While sea salt does not provide cures or treatments, it can certainly make your life more enjoyable. If you have sensitive digestion, you may want to limit your intake to two tablespoons a day, perhaps on cloudy, hot days when your body tends to retain more fluids.
There are also main differences between sea salt and table salt. Table salt tends to lose its mineral content as it ages, while sea salt maintains its mineral and natural taste. Also, sea salts generally have a lighter texture than table salt. This means that sea salt tends to be more popular among chefs and cooks because it provides a more even texture and richer flavor. Salt helps to impart tastes from one food to another, and the texture is often what adds to the flavor or texture of certain foods.
Himalayan salt has become increasingly popular over the past few years because it is far healthier than other options. It also has a higher concentration of minerals and trace elements than other alternatives, including regular table salt and regular “conversion” salt. Because of its health benefits and its unique, slightly bitter taste, Himalayan salt is becoming widely accepted in cookery and baking circles for use in recipes, although it is not yet as widely used in cooking as fine-grained table salt. Because it provides a level of versatility that other salts do not offer, it may eventually challenge traditional salt in the cooking industry.