I love salt

[cherimoya_kid]

I wonder if there's been a study that tracks sodium levels against the death rate.

[svrn]

When salt as described as toxic or an irritant, it's usually described as a concentrated source with water removed.  But with the water and salt ( minerals left in a natural balance ) intact, whole oceans supporting life beyond imagination thrive perfectly.

the salty ocean is meant to support a distinctly different form of life than ours, saltwater fish. that fact that they live in this water is no indication that it is healthy for humans to orally ingest in any way whether its in water or not.

If you doubt this I encourage you to take a gulp of sea water and tell us if you still think the salt is healthy even though its in water. I know when I took a gulp of salt water I was sick for weeks.

as far as all this talk of salt being in the blood and everthing else this is also quite irrelevant. Theres a big difference between sodium naturally present in raw foods that is bioavailable and an isolated rock like product that is completely lifeless. Living foods are healthy dead foods are not. Salt is definitly not alive it is actually an anti life environment in which bacteria cannot survive.

this is like saying protien powder is healthy since protien can be found in raw meat. THe logic is completely flawed.

[van]

I have had many accidental gulps in my life, and never even got close to  getting sick, hence is why I'm suspicious that your opinion is somewhat off center.  If you take meat and dry it in the sun, and then grind it with a rock, you end up with mostly protein powder.  If you take sea water and dry it in the sun, you end with salt including almost every mineral there is on the planet in almost identical ratios as found in the body (excluding the amount of sodium).   I have experimented with and without salt, and found no difference.  I do find that too much salt and I'll retain what feels to be water.  So including all the millions of peoples through out history that valued salt like gold, I don't think it should be something to fear.  Now for you, that may be a different reality.   So then, don't use it. 

[Ioanna]

I wonder if there's been a study that tracks sodium levels against the death rate.

ck, what do you mean?

[cherimoya_kid]

I've seen everything from wondrous healing to unpleasant illnesses caused by the consumption unrefined sea salt intake.

Table salt isn't worth eating, IMO.   Celtic brand sea salt is good stuff, though, especially the Fleur de Sel.

[cherimoya_kid]

ck, what do you mean?

A study that tracks sodium levels against mortality.  I did a quick Google and came up with several that seem to suggest that low sodium levels are more correlated with death than excess sodium levels.

http://circheartfailure.ahajournals.org/content/4/5/637.full



http://www.medpagetoday.com/Surgery/GeneralSurgery/34692

Here's one that says that people with diabetes are especially prone to dying if they have low sodium levels:

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2362.2011.02613.x/abstract

[cherimoya_kid]

Here's one that shows the opposite

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/230981.php

However, the salt that those patients were eating was, no doubt, refined table salt, instead of high-quality, unrefined Celtic brand salt (or some equivalent-quality product).

I personally know a guy who got rid of his candida problems by just eating a teaspoon or so of the unrefined Celtic salt every day for several months.

[Dr. D]

Since this is a thread about loving salt I assume this is on topic: would you mind sharing more about fleur de sel? All I know is its expensive but supposedly the best finishing salt. Beyond that, how does it fair in the raw scope of things? I enjoy salt and find it necessary in small amounts with the occasional binge if I find my body responding beneficially.

[cherimoya_kid]

So I think salt is more important for people who have carb-related problems like diabetes or candida overgrowth.

[cherimoya_kid]

Since this is a thread about loving salt I assume this is on topic: would you mind sharing more about fleur de sel? All I know is its expensive but supposedly the best finishing salt. Beyond that, how does it fair in the raw scope of things? I enjoy salt and find it necessary in small amounts with the occasional binge if I find my body responding beneficially.

When seawater is dried, the fleur de sel (translates as "flower of the sea") is the salt on the top.  The gray salt is from the lower layers, and has bits of sand, grit, etc. mixed in. 

The Celtic brand salts are definitely "raw".

 

[Dr. D]

Oh, okay that makes sense. Yeah, I use Celtic sea salt and really like it. It doesn't have that nasty table salt flavor (literally makes me nauseous), and I have noticed the bits of sand and grit. Though they seem to dissolve well enough in the water so that doesn't bother me much. Not worth the extra money then? In other words, your opinion, fleur de sel worth getting over Celtic gray? Thanks.

[Iguana]

There has already been 3 pages of arguing and disputes about salt here:
http://www.rawpaleodietforum.com/instinctoanopsology/salt/

[cherimoya_kid]

Oh, okay that makes sense. Yeah, I use Celtic sea salt and really like it. It doesn't have that nasty table salt flavor (literally makes me nauseous), and I have noticed the bits of sand and grit. Though they seem to dissolve well enough in the water so that doesn't bother me much. Not worth the extra money then? In other words, your opinion, fleur de sel worth getting over Celtic gray? Thanks.

I think it's worth it, but I use so little salt that I don't actually bother doing so.  I get most of my salt from my food.

[primalgirl]

I used to love salt and never in a million years thought I'd ever be able to get off it! But I did (except for very seldom LOL) but seriously when I eat a little too much whew! the symptoms that I get are nuts...dark swollen bags under my eyes, ankles swollen plus who knows what else under the surface. As the late Aajonous Vonderplanitz said in one of his books, "one grain of sea salt kills 50,000 red blood cells".
Food tastes great without it now and I'm blown away by that, it took awhile for that to happen. I started raw primal on October 1, 2010 so this is my third anniversary month and for sure it changed my life!

[Ioanna]

happy anniversary primalgirl!

[svrn]

IM so sick of all this talk on here of people drinking water from the ocean. I dont want to call anyone a liar but the fact that I got so sick for weeks after one gulp combined with the fact that any source iv ever found on the  confirms my experience that drinking the ocean is incredibly dangerous i must call bullshit on iguana and van saying they drank ocean water and were fine.

Please show me some evidence other than your anecdotal evidence which I do not believe.

Iv never come across anyone who has said anything other than drinking salt water is highly dangerous.

http://www.marineinsight.com/misc/marine-safety/10-effects-of-drinking-salt-water-of-the-sea/

Theres just one article listing the side effects of drinking ocean. I had most of these when I had just one gulp.

Sorry guys but I reiterate, im calling bullshit on this one.

[svrn]

and theres nothing raw about a dried product such as sea salt. All of my experience with dried meat and dried fruits confirm this for me. Dried foods digest for me just as poorly as cooked. Sometimes even worse.

Perhaps you want to call salt taken from salt mines raw because all that was done to it was that it was removed but I must remind you that all your doing at that point is taking a rock from the side of a mountain and grinding it into powder so you can even begin to actually physically get it into your body. Id hardly call eating rocks raw foodism.

[van]

I don't think this is going to help you get it, but here goes.  I know all kinds of people who have gulped accidentally and  taken a mouth full of sea water and never got sick. In fact you are the first person I've ever heard of to say such a thing, and I am an ocean swimmer.   I think the problem is your way of needing to interpret what people here write.  I NEVER said that I go out and purposely drink sea water, nor do I think it would do me good.  I DID say I have accidentally swallowed a mouth full.  Big difference.  And further more,, when you really think about it, if you want to, go swim a mile in the ocean, and figure out how much water is going down your throw with all the big breaths of air, and the waves etc. It's more than a gulp.  You seem to get locked onto an idea and will go to great lengths defending your position.  If you get sick with a mouth full of water, that's you and not even close to the rest of the world who spend time in the ocean.  Nor, if we took a poll here, I doubt anyone would have problems eating the same amount of low temp sun dried powered meat as compared to fresh.   But, I will refrain from even suggesting it in the first place, for it will only confuse the issue.  Most table salt is produced in huge high temp processing facilities that have nothing in common to the ancient practice of damning off a tidal flow of fresh seawater and letting the sun evaporate the water until it becomes a dry power.   I suggest you take your experience and if you think others will benefit, let them know of what happens to You.   After that, let it go.  We're not here to convince anyone of anything, only to share. 

[svrn]

I can give you countless sources warning against the dangers of seawater drinking such as the one i previously posted from a website for and by seafarers

you have given no evidence

yes the seawater I gulped was accidental and it was the only time I have in my life. I immediately vomited when I got back to shore.

The only people I could find recommending sea water all stressed the importance of drinking only a tiny amount.

This indicates the fact that it is toxic. What other raw food is there that you have to make sure you do not have too much of under penalty of death?

even the strongest toxin becomes unnoticeable in a small enough amount. This is no different for ocean water.

[svrn]

This is very reminscent to me of my experience smoking organic tobacco. One hit feels very healthy to me but when iv done to much iv been on the floor nauseous and miserable. This flags it for me as a dangerous product even though i feel no negative effects from just one hit. Just like you can have a tiny sip of salt water once in a while and be healthy but if you take a big gulp you could get very sick like me.

Such indicators are for me the reason I decided to for the most part completely quit tobacco and salt even though I feel no negative effects in tiny amounts. Cannabis for example doesnt give me such engative effects no matter how much I smoke, putting me to sleep at worst.

[svrn]

also im quite sick of all this, "it doesnt work for you but might work for someone else".

Why do people think that different humans bodies function differently to certain foods to such an extent? What other animal can you show me on this planet that has such a wide range of things that are good or bad for at these people claim humans have?

The truth is that 99 percent of humans in regards to what substances are harmful to our bodies are the same. This does not mean that resistances to certain toxins dont vary, my point is that whether or not a substance is toxic to humans is uniform throughout humanity, once again, this does not include variabilites in resistance to various toxins.

[van]

I am not going to jump in with you anymore.  You want to look up warnings to sea farers who run out of water and try to drink sea water... go ahead.  It has nothing to do with the millions, yes millions of swimmers, surfers, etc.  who every year accidentally swallow a mouth full of sea water and don't get sick.  Again, following your posts for some time, you have a distinct ability to use any and all means to seemingly try to substantiate your opinions.  Believing your thoughts can lead you far from what is real.  I am not going to respond again. 

[svrn]

please show me evidence of someone who has swallowed a mouthful of seawater and not gotten sick.

Anyone not just van. You will find that they dont exist. While the body can handle a small amount of a certain toxin a reasonable amount such as a mouthful of seawater will always make almost everyone someone sick.

Can someone please find me an article promoting sea water drinking that doesnt include a disclaimer saying make sure it is only a tiny amount just like any other toxic substance comes with the same warning.

And can someone please respond to me about pouring salt on the mucous membrane of a slug and what evidence one has that it would react any differently inside the human body.

Once again i shall take a lack of response to my questions as an admission of lack of evidence.

[LePatron7]

Can someone please find me an article promoting sea water drinking that doesnt include a disclaimer saying make sure it is only a tiny amount just like any other toxic substance comes with the same warning.

And can someone please respond to me about pouring salt on the mucous membrane of a slug and what evidence one has that it would react any differently inside the human body.

I can't believe we're even having this discussion. It's ludicrous to think that the reason a snail dies when coming in contact with salt has anything to do with it being bad for humans.

http://www.slugoff.co.uk/slug-facts/salt

The article explains why salt kills slugs, and covers (very little) on why it doesn't kill humans.

By your logic (salt killing a snail) no animal should be alive in the ocean. Or at least they should all be very unhealthy and on the verge of death (like a snail most likely would be if placed in ocean water).

[cherimoya_kid]

Svrn, you probably either were swimming in an area with contaminated water, or your body just really didn't need salt at that time. Plenty of people have drunk a mouthful of seawater accidentally with no problem.  I know I have.