Salt
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Salt
Latin:
Sodium chloride
Origin:
Salt, or sodium chloride, is the mineral substance of great importance. It is the crystal made by boiling-away or sun-drying sea water, the brine of salt wells, salt ponds or salt springs.
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The mineral form halite, or rock salt, is sometimes called common salt to distinguish it from a class of chemical compounds called salts.
Salt is essential to the health of both people and animals. Table salt, used universally as a seasoning, is fine-grained and of high purity.
Sea salt, which is available in fine or coarse grains (the very large-grain variety, known commonly as gros sel, requires a table mill) has a clean tastiness other salts lack. Its relatively large flakes also make it a pleasure to use. Of all sea salts, the French fleur de sel is considered the finest. Taken from the crust of salt-pond evaporation, it is delicate but also intensely flavored. It is used most often to season cooked dishes or crudites.
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The meat-packing, sausage-making, fish-curing, and food-processing industries use salt as a preservative or seasoning or both. It is employed for curing and preserving hides and as a brine for refrigeration.
In the chemical industry, salt is required in the manufacture of sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), sodium hydroxide (caustic soda), hydrochloric acid, chlorine, and many other chemicals.
Salt is also employed in soap, glaze, and porcelain enamel manufacture and enters into metallurgical processes as a flux (a substance promoting fusing of metals).
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When applied to snow or ice, salt lowers the melting point of the mixture. Thus, large amounts are used in northern climates to help rid thoroughfares of accumulated snow and ice.
Properties:
Salty in flavor, cold in nature, it is related to the channels of the stomach, kidney, large and small intestines.
Functions:
Induces vomiting, removes phlegm, cools the blood and clears away pathogenic fire and toxic materials.
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Salt possesses the functions of clearing evil heat and cooling down evil heat in the blood. It is also an antidote (counteracting a poison) and a very common flavoring. It is essential to body health. No one can lead a normal life without taking salt regularly.
Salt maintains fluid balance and blood pressure, improves the flavor of many foods and is a useful food preservatives. However, excessive intakes of salt can cause a rise in blood pressure, and an increased risk of stroke, heart disease and kidney failure. High intakes promotes an increase in calcium excretion and may exacerbate osteoporosis (a condition that affects especially older women and is characterized by decrease in bone mass with decreased density and enlargement of bone spaces producing porosity and fragility).
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Applications:
Salt is extensively applied for chest distension, sore throat and bleeding from the gum. It also stimulates one's appetite and arouses delicious taste.
Iodized salt--that is, salt to which small quantities of potassium iodide have been added--is widely used in areas where iodine is lacking from the diet, a deficiency that can cause swelling of the thyroid gland, commonly called goitre.
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1. For sore throat and habitual constipation:
Dissolve 1-2 g salt in 200 ml warm boiled water. Drink in early morning on empty stomach.
2. For sunstroke with thirst and profuse sweating:
Use appropriate amount of salt and sugar and dissolve in warmed boiling water. Drink as one would tea.
3. For poor milk secretion in puerpera (a lying-in woman) and chloasma:
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Fry 50 g black sesame and 25 g salt until sesame is done. Grind into powder form and eat as one likes or with other foods. For chloasma, continue the recipe for 6 months or longer.
4. For hiccups as a result of immoderate meal:
Lick a little salt and place it on surface of tongue. As it dissolves, swallow it bit by bit.
Dosage and Administration:
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To be taken after being dissolved in boiling water, or used as condiment when vegetables are cooked.
When used to induce vomiting, it should be parched yellow and taken after being dissolved. It can also be parched and wrapped in a cloth and applied to the affected part, dissolved in water for eye dripping, or used to bathe skin and external diseases.
Cautions on Use:
Those suffering from edema should avoid it.
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Reference Materials:
Toxic or Side Effects:
Modern Researches:
Salt mainly contains sodium chloride. There are more impurities in sea water salt, such as considerable amount of iodine, potassium chloride, magnesium sulphate, magnesium chloride, calcium sulphate, etc.
Most people eat more salt than they need. In Britain, the average adult eats 9 g (about 2 level teaspoons) of salt per day, as opposed to the World Health Organization's recommended figure of 6 g. Doctors and nutritionists associate excessive salt consumption with an increased risk of high blood pressure, which can eventually result in strokes, heart disease and kidney failure.
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Every cell in the body needs sodium in order to function properly. It helps to regulate the body's fluid balance and to maintain healthy blood pressure levels. It is also needed for the healthy functioning of the nerves and muscles--including those in the heart--and the absorption of certain nutrients in the small intestine and kidneys.
Sodium requirements vary according to age, and how much is lost in sweat--either through physical exertion, or just from living in a hot, humid climate. Some people naturally perspire more than others--this is not necessarily a sign of being unhealthy. Although any salt that the body loses through sweating will need to be replaced, too much salt can be just as damaging to your health as too little.
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The salt that we add to food when cooking, or at the table, accounts for only one-fifth of our total sodium intake. Another fifth comes from naturally occurring sodium in unprocessed foods--there are low levels of sodium in all fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, grains and pulses. But more than half of sodium in our diet--at least 60 percent--comes from manufactured foods, which contain salt or sodium compounds, such as the preservative sodium nitrate, the flavor enhancer monosodium glutamate, or sodium bicarbonate, which is a raising agent.
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The minimum daily amount of sodium needed by the adult body is 1.6 g, contained in about 4 g of salt. A level teaspoon of salt weighs 5 g; a heaped teaspoon weighs about 8 g. Salt is made up of 40 percent sodium and 60 percent chloride, by weight. This means that one gram of salt contains 0.4 g of sodium, and conversely one gram of sodium is the equivalent of 2.5 g of salt.
Many foods, such as bread, breakfast cereals and biscuits, contain 'hidden' salt, but it is not always practical to cut these foods out of the diet. The most obvious way to cut down on salt is to use less in cooking and at the table. Salt does not need to be added to vegetable water, for example; in fact, salt detracts from the natural sweetness of many vegetables.
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If you are in the habit of adding salt at the table, try omitting it from cooking altogether. Use fresh or dried herbs and spices to add extra flavor to cooked dishes and salad dressings. Avoid food which are high in salt. By weight, these include stock cubes (on average around 60 percent) and gravy mixes (15 percent), smoked salmon (5 percent), cooked bacon (4 percent), ham (4 percent), potato crisps (1 percent), olives (2 percent) and sauerkraut (2 percent).
, 百拇医药 Babies and children are less efficient than adults at excreting sodium, so they are much more vulnerable to excessive sodium intake--which can cause severe dehydration. This is why babies and young children should not have salt added to their foods. Packaged baby foods have to meet strict health regulations, and do not have any salt or sodium compounds added to them at all.
Adults need salt, but only in small quantities. Large intakes of salt cannot be tolerated by our bodies--which is why you should never drink sea water. Excessive amounts of salt can increase calcium excretion and so increase the risk of developing osteoporosis.
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Miso, tamari or soya, used in Oriental dishes, are concentrated sources of sodium, but only small amounts of them are used. Lemon juice, garlic or pepper are healthier alternatives.
Low-sodium salt--half sodium and half potassium--is now widely available. Avoid using low-salt substitutes, however, if you are diabetic or suffer from kidney disease. Diabetics often retain potassium so must guard against accumulating dangerously high levels; people with kidney disease may also have difficulty excreting potassium, and they too should watch their intake., 百拇医药