11/08/2025
SALT: What to Look For and What to Avoid
For thousands of years, salt has been treasured not only for its flavour but for its essential role in human health.
Today, we know more than ever about why choosing the right salt matters and how the wrong one can bring unwanted extras like microplastics, additives, or excess environmental pollutants.
Salt is not the enemy. In fact, it’s a mineral your body can’t live without. The key is choosing a salt that nourishes you, without the unwanted contaminants.
Why Salt Is Essential
Salt (sodium chloride) is far more than a flavour enhancer, it’s a critical electrolyte involved in:
Hydration – Sodium helps your body absorb and retain fluids, preventing dehydration.
Nerve Function – It enables electrical impulses to travel between your brain, muscles, and organs.
Muscle Performance – Without adequate sodium, muscle cramps and fatigue are far more likely.
Blood Pressure Regulation – In the right balance with potassium, salt helps maintain healthy circulation.
Stomach Acid Production – Chloride from salt is used to make hydrochloric acid, essential for digestion and nutrient absorption.
Adrenal Health & Stress Response – Sodium supports optimal adrenal gland function, helping regulate cortisol and stress hormones.
Glucose & Nutrient Transport – Sodium plays a key role in moving glucose, amino acids, and other nutrients into cells for energy and repair.
Brain Function & Focus – Proper sodium levels are linked to improved cognitive performance, mood stability, and reduced “brain fog.”
The Most Common Types of Salt
Beyond the differences in colour and texture, the way salt is sourced and processed can greatly influence its purity, mineral content, and even flavour.
While there are many varieties available, three types dominate most kitchens and supermarket shelves. Here’s how they compare and what to keep in mind when choosing the one that’s right for you.
1. Table Salt (Refined/Iodized)
What it is: Highly processed salt, often fortified with iodine to prevent deficiency.
Source: Mined from underground salt deposits, heavily refined.
Minerals: Primarily sodium chloride, trace minerals removed.
Benefits: Widely available.
Cons: Often contains anti-caking agents like silicia dioxide; multiple studies show high microplastic contamination; stripped of natural minerals.
2. Celtic Sea Salt
What it is: Grey, moist, unrefined salt harvested from coastal regions of France.
Source: Seawater, sun-dried in clay ponds.
Minerals: Contains magnesium, potassium, calcium, and trace minerals.
Benefits: Naturally harvested, retains mineral profile, softer flavour. Typically a good salt if tested and cleared (some companies do test, others don't). Celtic sea salt would be our pick of the 3.
Cons: Can contain excess heavy metals depending on source; potential microplastic exposure from ocean pollution. Always housed in plastic.
3. Himalayan Pink Salt
What it is: Rock salt from ancient deposits in Pakistan’s Khewra mines.
Source: Mined, hand-chiseled, minimally processed.
Minerals: Contains 80+ trace minerals in small amounts.
Benefits: Low microplastic risk compared to sea salts; unique flavour. Good mineral profile.
Cons: Regardless of low microplastic exposure at the source, it is often housed in plastic. Some purity concerns over local sourcing and heavy metal exposure.
The 5 Issues with Salt Today
The way salt is harvested and packaged can greatly affect its purity and mineral content. Many common salts on the market face the same recurring issues from additives to environmental contaminants, which is why it’s worth knowing what to look out for.
Anticaking agents/additives: Regular table salt is often cut with an anti-caking agents or additives like silicon dioxide, tricalcium phosphase and potassium iodide (which can cause issues for those with thyroid concerns).
Heavily Processed: Regular salts are often heavily processed and stripped of beneficial minerals.
Heavy Metals: Just like food,all salt will naturally contain heavy metals as it is harvested from the earth. This is completely natural and unavoidable. However, there are acceptable limits and some salts can exceed these depending on how they are harvested or sourced. Not all but some will.
Microplastics: Given how widespread plastic has become in our environment, it is incredibly common for salt to contain microplastics. This is more so common in supermarket bought salts and sea salts which often have environmental microplastic exposure.
Packaging: Unfortunately, 99% of salt is packaged in plastic and will often interact with the plastic packaging overtime thereby leaching chemicals into the salt.
By Nahla Earth who have some really amazing natural products 👌
