Salt

There are two kinds of salt: mined salt and sea salt.

Regular table salt is made from mined salt. Table salt has been refined at high temperatures and has several additives, including anti-caking agents and iodine. The high temperatures it is subjected to totally changes its chemical structure. Most processed/packaged foods are high in this refined salt, and it is really not good for you. If your doctor tells you to cut back on salt, then cut out all of this kind of salt.

Kosher salt can come from either mined or sea salt. It is called kosher salt because it is used to draw blood out of kosher meats. There are also not many (if any) additives in kosher salt. A lot of chefs like to use kosher salt because it distributes more evenly in food, is lighter (somewhat flaky), and gives a better flavor.

There are many different kinds of sea salts. I like sea salt because it is possible to have a good salt without a lot of processing, additives, and heat-refining. Here are a couple of good sea salts that we use at our house:

• Redmond Real Salt - This is a sea salt that has actually been mined (a little confusing, there, I know). It comes from Utah, which the makers of this salt claim used to be covered in salt water. Whatever. I don't know much about geology, but I do know that their salt is not bleached, dried at high heat, or polluted with additives.
• Celtic Sea Salt - This is an unrefined salt farmed on the coast of France. It is high in various trace minerals. The link is to a PDF file for a brochure for this company in which you can find the website and a toll-free phone number to call. They will send you a free sample if you ask nicely.
  

Most sea salts have natural iodine in them (unlike the unnatural iodine added to plain table salt), but if you decide to make the switch to sea salt and you have thyroid/goiter issues, you can always add some kelp to your diet to make up the difference. Real Salt and Celtic Sea Salt are also both certified kosher, but are not exactly the same as most kosher salt (not flaky).

Having a low-salt diet can actually be harmful to your health. If you like to salt your food, I think you can do it without ill effects if you simply choose your salt wisely. Dr. Mercola has some good articles on his site. He recommends some sort of Himalayan salt, which I am sure is also very good. If your doctor tells you to cut back on salt due to high blood pressure or whatever, I would definitely do some independent research. Here's a good place to start.

It is true that sea salt is more expensive than table salt, but if you think about how much salt you go through, say in a month, you know that the extra expense will not be that much.