An interesting fact about salt is that it was used instead of money back in ancient times. Soldiers were actually paid with salt in ancient Rome. That is how the word “salary” came to existence.
Now, let us see why salt is important. You already know that our bodies are mostly composed of water. This water is not just pure water, but it contains many elements, one of which is salt. Cells and tissues have certain amounts of salt and the human body needs this salt to function normally. The most popular types of salt include sea salt, table salt, and iodized salt. The last type of salt is actually the table salt that has iodine added. Iodine is important for the human body and it can prevent various illnesses, so it is added to salt.
Sea salt:
Sea salt can be defined as unrefined salt. We get it from the evaporation process. In other words, when the seawater evaporates, what is left is salt. Sea salt has two percent mineral content such as sulfur, iron, and magnesium. Other ninety-eight percent is actually sodium chloride. People usually prefer sea salt to table salt because it is higher in mineral nutrients. Some cuisines use only sea salt for making various dishes.
Table salt:
Table salt is the most common type of salt. It has 99.9 percent of sodium chloride. We get this type of salt from deposits that are mined and processes. Because of such processes, table salt doesn’t have many minerals. Some additives are also added to this type of salt.
According to some nutritionists, sea salt can be much healthier than the table salt. It is less processed and it keeps its valuable nutrients, so people are usually advised to use sea salt instead of regular table salt. In fact, there are patients who are advised not to use table salt at all. However, we know that seawater can be quite polluted, so people are worried about the purity of sea salt.
