Guest Post by  Jeffrey Lewis 

Salt has always been an essential ingredient in our daily cooking. It not only imparts a salty flavor to our food but also fulfills the mineral requirement of our body. It contains sodium, chloride and many other naturally occurring or added minerals and trace elements which help in regulating our different body functions.

There are different kinds of salt available in the market. Choosing the best salt that is good for your health and wellness is an important decision to make. 

All these salts have a similar chemical composition. They are all mainly made from sodium and chloride. The difference is because of their source of origin, the method of extraction and most importantly their mineral content and nutritional value.

Let’s find out different salts and their nutritional value in this article:

Table Salt

The most widely used and most criticized form of salt is regular table salt. It is cheap and easily available in the market due to which people mostly buy it and use it without much thought. It is mined from ancient salt deposits and dried up in sea beds. It gets contaminated while mining through machines and requires refining and rigorous processing which not only remove contamination but also strip off minerals as well. It also contains artificially added iodine.  Due to these additives and preservatives, this salt is not a smart choice for consumption.

Sea Salt

It is extracted from seawater through a process called evaporation. It was very popular for consumption. But due to water pollution, it got contaminated and became less favorite among fitness freaks who used to like it for its purity. Unlike table salt, it contains naturally occurring iodine in trace amounts. It is also easily available in the market.

Himalayan Pink Salt

It is hand-mined in its natural form, from Khewra salt mines, in the northern region of Pakistan. It contains 84 minerals and trace elements and said to be the purest salt available. It is unrefined and unprocessed and does not contain any additives and preservatives, due to which its mineral content is intact. 

Himalayan salt naturally contains iodine in trace amount which is less than the iodine content of iodized salt. Therefore, people who have iodine deficiency and are using Himalayan salt, may need to get iodine from some other source.

Apart from being pure and unrefined, this salt has so many benefits for our health. It is said to relieve the symptoms of many respiratory and skin conditions. It helps in maintaining the body’s pH level and providing hydration to the body. It has many uses in cooking, skin care, and salt therapy.

High salt intake causes water retention which results in the increase in weight, but Himalayan salt is said to reduce water retention, so it can be used in weight management recipes in small quantity.

Black Salt

Also known as ‘’Kala namak’’ is mostly found in the Himalayas. Its main constituents are sodium and chloride but it also contains trace amounts of sodium sulfate, iron sulfide, sodium sulfide, and hydrogen sulfide as well. It is reddish black in color which is due to iron content present in it.  It has a pungent smell and mostly used in central Asia. It is one of the best natural treatments for heartburn, indigestion. It also helps in reducing bloating and relieving many stomach problems such as constipation.

For weight loss, low sodium diet is recommended to reduce water retention. Black salt has lower sodium content due to which it can be used in a weight management routine.

Grey Salt

It is extracted by hand from the Atlantic coast in France. It is rich in minerals such as iron, calcium, magnesium, and zinc. Its color is due to the minerals present in it. It is very similar to Himalayan salt in providing health benefits. It is of very high quality but a expensive salt.

Fleur de Sel

It has pyramid-shaped crystals which are collected by hand from the surface of seawater with much care. Just like Himalayan salt, this is also the pure form of salt. It is free from any impurities and gypsum. It is available in its pure natural form. It has a very beautiful salty flavor and helps in reducing salt intake. It is an expensive salt but worth the money.

Red Salt

It is also the sea salt that hails from Hawaii and has so many beneficial minerals. It is a mixture of sea water and volcanic clay that adds to its nutritional value.  Its red color is also due to the volcanic Hawaiian clay. It is rich in iron content and other minerals, due to which it is recommended to anemic patients. 

Jeffrey Lewis Bio

Hey there, friends! I’m Jeffrey. I’m a blogger at Ittefaq Salt. Thank you for joining me, as I share different aspects of my life. I’m so thrilled you stopped by! I love to create a beautiful, thriving life around me and helping others to do the same. I love writing about nature, health, food and nutrition-related topics.