I See Sea Salt...

I’m starting to see sea salt everywhere – and am starting to wonder why. As a ‘gourmet’ ingredient, it definitely has some interesting flavor attributes and, in some instances, provides nice color and texture characteristics. But, is it actually GOOD for you?

In reality, sea salt and table salt are basically the same thing: Sodium Chloride. Sea salt is made by evaporating sea water. Table salt is mined from the earth – which ended up there when the ancient seas evaporated. From that perspective, they are identical. Both are even excavated using the same equipment: front-end loaders and dump trucks. The big difference comes from what happens after they are scooped up.

Traditional table salt is purified to remove trace minerals and impurities that occur in seawater. Some of these impurities are, arguably, good for you: iron, sulfur, magnesium. Some impurities are definitely not: lead and mercury, for example. In addition, table salt manufacturers add iodine, an essential nutrient which isn’t found in sea salt. Products marketed as sea salt are often sold ‘as is’. Whatever was in the water, ends up in the salt.

All things considered, I tend to fall back on the ‘evolutionary’ argument to make the decision: The salt we evolved on looked more like the sea than it did Morton’s. Therefore, sea salt probably has some nuances that better provide for our nutritional needs.

On the other hand, the idea that sea salt has lower sodium is pure bunk.

Sea salt and table salt have exactly the same sodium content. But, because they have no agreed upon regulatory identity, products labeled ‘sea salt’ can contain just about anything. Claims like “100% Sea Salt”, “100% Natural”, “Organic” and “Pure” are all fair game and are used with impunity. For example, the popular ‘low sodium’ sea salts achieve that claim by cutting them with other, non-sodium, salts – mainly potassium chloride. This is exactly how low sodium table salt is made. Because potassium chloride can be found in sea water (but at very low levels), the manufacturers argue that adding large quantities of it to ‘regular’ sea salt, means it can still be labeled “100% sea salt”.

Bottom line:
Sea salt is pretty neat stuff and a great addition to any pantry – as a seasoning.
Sea salt is NOT a particularly healthy alternative to table salt – especially in terms of sodium reduction.