The Salt Paradox

By Dewey F. Millay, N.D.

The most common accepted definition for salt is the mineral compound of sodium (Na) and Chlorine (Cl), namely, Sodium Chloride (NaCl). Most people call it “table salt.”

Sodium is the most active element in the body. It is found in every cell as the basic chemical transport system of most other minerals. This absorption method is called the “Sodium-Potassium pump” which operates on the principle of re-polarization. In order to work properly in our bodies, sodium must be in balance with potassium.

Sodium is necessary for maintaining the proper water balance and blood pH in our bodies. It facilitates nerve and muscle function. Sodium is also associated in the co-transport of proteins and carbohydrates. Virtually all foods contain at least some sodium. Fruits and fresh vegetables are the best sources of both sodium and potassium. Both help to alkalize our bodies and keep them healthy.

Chlorine is the other element of salt. It is absolutely necessary for the proper digestion of proteins, as it is the main constituent of hydrochloric acid (HCl) found in the stomach. Chlorine is one of the most active elements of the Periodic Table, having the ability to combine with virtually every other element.

Salt (NaCl) is probably the most basic nutrient (after water and air) for the preservation of life. The human embryo spends its first nine months in a salty environment of amniotic fluid where it grows three billion times in weight. The serum of our blood is basically a brine saline solution. Ranchers and farmers certainly know of the value of salt blocks for their animals. So you might ask, what is all this negative advice about salt?

Ordinary Table salt Not Ordinary

Ordinary table salt (OTS) is not what you think it is. Compared to natural, pure Sodium Chloride (NaCl), it is not ordinary at all, nor is it “natural.” Most modern day salt pits are mined by using water to be mixed into a slurry producing a brine solution. The salt is then turned into a “manufactured product.” The brine is brought to a boil (at least 350 degrees F) in a vacuum while calcium sulfate is added for a period of 48 hours. Gradually the pressure is reduced and the salt begins to form into solids. Now it is placed into a centrifuge to spin off the water for drying and the addition of magnesium carbonate, silicates, and iodine.

From a chemistry standpoint, the resultant product is no longer simple salt (NaCl), but a stable compound that does not ionize well in solution, as NaCl will do and which our body can utilize. This new product will not cake or lump up with moisture like simple salt will do. Thus was derived the Morton Salt Company slogan, “When it rains, it pours.”

The key word is “silicates.” Silicates are a class of compounds of the element, silicon (Si), which is the prime ingredient in the manufacturing of glass. Silica is also the principle component of sand paper.

When ordinary table salt (OTS) is absorbed into the blood stream, it arrives in various particle sizes and fragments of the new compound that comprises OTS. These microscopic particles become abrasives to the inside of the blood vessel walls. This can be likened to sand blasting the vessel walls at bends and junctions. The arteries with the highest volume and most pressure are the first pipes to experience the abrasive effects.

Eventually areas of inflammation and lacerations, or cuts, begin to appear. This means the blood vessels bleed on the inside. At this point, the body’s damage control team goes into action and sends out platelets to stop the bleeding and to produce its own cholesterol to help the platelets stay in place and to grease the entire inflamed area.

While this is going on, a variety of inorganic and unbound, calcium molecules begin to stick to the platelets and cholesterol. As this whole mess begins to grow, your body’s damage control team builds a screen net over the area to keep it in place. These are the ingredients of vascular plaques and the cause for most heart diseases of today.

Excess sodium has been implicated as a cause of increased heart disease while health care authorities recommend salt restriction as a remedy. However, the problem may not be the sodium at all, but the modified version of salt now sold that is actually a sodium silicate and not true NaCl.

We Need salt, but Not Ordinary Table Salt

Once you understand what OTS is, it becomes obvious that OTS is a great deterrent to health, yet we need salt (NaCl) for our bodies to function. We need some other source than the silicate versions sold in super markets.

Most health food stores stock various forms of sea salt that are inexpensive and provide the basic elements we require. Look for a product that is not heat-treated. During the formation of salt in nature, it is found in crystals. Included within these crystals are other minerals our body needs. The Key Company of St. Louis, Missouri, markets a product called “Sun dried salt crystals” which contains over forty trace minerals in colloidal form. Colloidal forms are easily absorbed into our blood. I have had good results with this product in restoring a healthy mineral balance with my patients over the years.

You can order their sun dried salt by calling (800) 325-9592 or by visiting the internet at www.thekeycompany.com. I have heard of other such companies with a similar product, but my experience has been with the Key Company. Salts from evaporated sea water not only supply the NaCl you need, but a host of other vital minerals.

Importance of Trace Minerals

Young Living does not have a salt (NaCl) substitute, but does have a balanced, full-spectrum mineral product called “Mineral Essence” (YL Item #3222). It is in an ionized liquid form. If you do not like the taste, put 20 drops in a gel capsule and swallow it that way. Young Living also has a condiment to be sprinkled on your food called Juvaspice (YL Item #3279) that can substitute for the flavor of salt, but is not really a substitute for natural sodium chloride. Juvaspice contains many minerals and supports good digestion.

According to two-time Nobel Prize winner, Linus Pauling, PhD, “You can trace every sickness, every disease, and every ailment to a mineral deficiency.” Ionic minerals are the most fully and quickly absorbed form of minerals available. Lack of minerals is a leading cause for poor health, which is easily remedied by the daily use of products such as Mineral Essence, Juvaspice, and natural sea salts and the avoidance of OTS.

It was back in the 1940’s when the Morton Salt Company began the manufacture of OTS containing silicates to produce a free-flowing product and adopted their slogan, “When it rains, it pours.” Statistics show that American heart disease really began to increase in both men and women since that time. It was first published that eggs were the culprit because of their high cholesterol content, so people began to reduce their intake of eggs. However, the increase in cardiovascular disease continued to increase.

The 1940’s was also when the country began to homogenize milk. This process causes the fat globules in whole milk to be fragmented into tiny molecules that will not regroup and that resist digestion, yet manage to enter the blood stream unaltered. Homogenization releases a very powerful enzyme called “xanthine oxidase,” which attacks the lining of the arteries resulting in inflammation and irritation. This process also supports the plaque buildup of the vascular system that leads to heart disease and possible cardiac failure.

The U.S. government subsidizes the National Milk Council advertising fund. Yet, the government does not promote natural salt crystals to be sold in commercial markets for human consumption. Does there seem to be a government conspiracy to promote heart disease in America? At the same time, the poor little egg has been blamed for all that cholesterol clogging our pipes. The egg is probably one of the best foods known to man in providing a digestible complete protein.

So there you have it: The Salt Paradox. The difference between OTS, the man-made poison we do not need and the natural forms of salt our bodies can utilize to our benefit and longevity.

 

Reprinted from The Raindrop Messenger, a free eline newsletter, with permission from Dr. David Stewart. To subscribe or download back issues, visit www.RaindropTraining.com.