rock/sea salt?

rabialiones

i suffer from high blood pressure and have cut out salt from my diet, never add any to food i cook.
however i have read somewhere that its not good to cut out salt altogether as salt contains essential minerals for body and that its ok to have a minimal amount of sea or rock salt.
does anyone have any ideas/info on this?
also whats the difference between sea and rock salt and which is the most beneficial?

ariba10

You would find it very difficult to cut out all salt especially if you eat any processed food.

There is added salt to the most surprising foods.

Ted_Hutchinson

The idea that we need to add salt to our food is simply wrong.

In terms of human evolution salt is a relative newcomer.

We've been domesticating SHEEP, GOATS, COWS and growing WHEAT & BARLEY for 10,000 YRS or 333 generations and many still havent' evolved to cope with wheat. Beer and wine have been about for a mere 7000yrs and Dairying only really took off just over 6000yrs ago so the Salt industry is a relative newcomer at less than 200 generations ago.

We, humankind, go back thousands of years before the introduction of salt to our diet.

SALT: The Forgotten Killer ~ Center for Science in the Public Interest

Are You Eating Too Much Salt?

What are some alternatives to salt?: answer

noonesperfect

I'm not sure if it's true or not, but I've been told that sea salt has a more intense "taste" than normal table salt therefore you need less..

My brother suffers from high blood pressure (on meds) and though, on the whole, he follows a careful diet as low in sodium as possible, he will go out for a meal now and again and enjoy something totally "against the rules". i.e. liver and bacon followed by cheese & biscuits washed down with a pint or 3 of beer!

Has you practice nurse not given you any information about diet?

As others say, it's the processed foods you have to watch out for.

PS my OH is also on meds for high blood pressure and his medication states that he shouldn't have certain types of salt substitute.

positivelymummy

i might as well throw in some bits of info i picked up years ago from the salt museum in Northwich, cheshire (yes honestly there really is a salt museum!) its a well known assumption that sea salt is better than rock salt, and it is wrong, rock salt is the better and purist salt, sea salt is contaminated with all the pollutants in the sea (and i'm guessing thats loads!) oh and while we're on salt, the salt that gets put on the road from the gritters is from winsford in cheshire:D i used to pass the place while visiting me old folk....aaah the man from the salt museum would be proud that i retained all that info many years ago!...er sorry dont know about safe quantities to eat though:D

belfastgirl23

positivelymummy wrote: »

i might as well throw in some bits of info i picked up years ago from the salt museum in Northwich, cheshire (yes honestly there really is a salt museum!) its a well known assumption that sea salt is better than rock salt, and it is wrong, rock salt is the better and purist salt, sea salt is contaminated with all the pollutants in the sea (and i'm guessing thats loads!) oh and while we're on salt, the salt that gets put on the road from the gritters is from winsford in cheshire:D i used to pass the place while visiting me old folk....aaah the man from the salt museum would be proud that i retained all that info many years ago!...er sorry dont know about safe quantities to eat though:D

It is so cool the variety of jobs people on here have had Really made me smile.

positivelymummy

belfastgirl23 wrote: »

It is so cool the variety of jobs people on here have had Really made me smile.

ha, i didn;t work there! i just went one day with my little sister as she'd been with school and said it was good, i thought it was fascinating! funny how i can remember things like that but i ant remember where my car keys are right now:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

keelykat

Do you make everything/cook everything from scratch? i mean everything? as there is hidden salt in all sorts of things like bread! so unless you make everything yourself-you ll still be consuming a certain amount of salt anyway. as long as you keep an eye on what your eating/drinking and keep salt intake low theres nothing to be worried about.

I dont think theres any reason to go mad trying to cut out everything, or going to extremes. Just have a balanced diet, and a bit of what you fancy wont hurt. My gp said i can have a takeaway once a week-so there you go! So long as you dont go stuffing your face and making yourself sick, dont worry.

keely.

ps-im controlling my bp too-have problems with it going high due to stress.

rabialiones

i do most of my cooking from scratch except for bread and my lemon puff biscuits which i have to have with my cuppa without fail.
other than that i try to eat mostly fruit and salads, also clove of garlic crushed and mixed with salsa or in sandwich.
i try to have fish, but think i overcook it especially tinned ones as i do not like the smell of it, so i do not know if its beneficial for me or not. i gulp it down like medicine! or mix it with rice so i cant or hardly taste it.

moneysaving_pharmacist

Salt is sodium chloride whether it's sea salt or rock salt, and it's the sodium content that causes the problems with blood pressure by causing fluid retention which expands blood volume, so increasing blood pressure.

Salt substitutes contain mostly potassium chloride. Too much potassium can be fatal as it can mess up heart rhythm. People who are taking ACE inhibitors (drug name ends in -pril i.e. ramipril), angiotensin receptor blockers (drug name ends in -sartan i.e. candesartan), spironolactone or eplerenone (Inspra) should not take salt substitutes as these drugs by themselves can cause high potassium levels. People taking these drugs also need need to speak to their pharmacist before taking anything for cystitis (such as Cystopurin) as some of these products contain potassium salts.

Ellie2758

There's a cathedral in Cracow in Poland made of salt.