Iodized salt

The salt enrichment program with iodine was adopted back in the Soviet era, but this trend has continued to this day. Some believe that this is a real protection against iodine deficiency and an indispensable product in the diet, while others deny its beneficial properties and see no reason to pay more. Whose side is the truth on and does modern man need iodized salt?

General product characteristics

Salt is a compound of sodium and chlorine (NaCl is sodium chloride). The substance is not synthesized by the human body, but is ingested only with food. Sodium chloride is an indispensable component that is responsible for quality life. Sodium maintains water and acid-base balance, promotes the transmission and formation of nerve impulses, is responsible for saturating cells with oxygen and keeps the muscle system in good shape. Chlorine improves the functioning of the digestive tract. The element is part of the gastric juice, bile and blood, so it has a complex effect on the body and all internal processes.

What is dangerous is the lack of NaCl

The first few days the body works on the already existing salt reserves. Later, the cardiovascular system and digestion begin to suffer ^[1]. A prolonged and critical lack of a substance can cause neurosis, the development of a depressive state and other problems of the nervous system. The first symptoms of salt deficiency are manifested by headache, apathy, muscle weakness, causeless nausea and drowsiness.

Chronic sodium deficiency can cause death.

Should I be afraid of lack of salt

The component is present in almost all foods. It is not only about the finished food from the supermarket, but also about vegetable products. We daily replenish the concentration of sodium, but we can not always track the extent of consumption. Moreover, the human body has learned to store a certain amount of salt on a rainy day.

The World Health Organization (hereinafter referred to as WHO) has established an average dosage of salt for each age group of the population. ^[2]. An adult healthy person needs to eat 6 grams of salt per day, which is equivalent to one teaspoon without a slide. According to WHO studies, the recommendation is not being followed, and a person consumes 2-2,5 times more salt than necessary.

The American Heart Association sees a problem in the low understanding of nutrition. Some consumers simply don’t realize that an unseasoned cut of meat, tomato, pea, or slice of cheese/rye bread already contains salt. If a person eats exclusively homemade food, then it is much easier to control salt intake. If not a single day goes without going to a catering establishment, then control over the amount of salt becomes impossible. The only way out is to ask the chef not to use salt in favor of vegetable seasonings and herbs.

A modern person needs to worry about a surplus, not a shortage of salt, and be as careful as possible about not only external, but also internal health.

Salt rejection: advantages and disadvantages

Unscientific sites about a healthy lifestyle and the basics of fitness advocate a complete rejection of salt and products that contain it. Refusal is motivated by rapid weight loss, body cleansing of toxins and improved quality of life. But is it really so?

What is potassium-sodium balance

This is the concentration of two ions – potassium (cell ion) and sodium (blood ion), which is harmonized by salt and products with its high content. ^[3]. The balance of these components provides:

• quality of the muscular corset;
• nervous activity;
• optimal distribution of fluids throughout the body;
• maintenance of the transport function.

Violation of this balance leads to problems on all counts. Ions must be supplied to the body in unequal amounts, and potassium is required by an order of magnitude more. The ratio of elements should be between 2:1 and 4:1. Why?

This balance is considered as safe as possible for humans. In the course of evolution, our body learned to actively store sodium, since it was extremely small in the prehistoric diet. Potassium, on the contrary, was in abundance, so the evolutionary machine missed this aspect. This component is concentrated in plant foods, and our ancestors were, first of all, gatherers. Modern man, on the contrary, consumes sodium in abundance, but forgets about the additional portion of potassium in the form of salad or fruit. Our primary task is to balance the diet so that all elements are in a harmonious ratio and do not create a surplus / deficit.

How to balance potassium-sodium balance

The daily requirement for sodium is 1-2 grams, for potassium – 2-4 grams (the total amount is equivalent to 1 teaspoon). If you are engaged in intense physical activity or work that requires excessive intellectual effort, then the dosage can be increased up to 3 teaspoons.

Do not forget that the salt of the body is obtained not only from white crystals, but also from industrial or vegetable food.

How to use the table? For example, to balance the intake of 1 teaspoon of salt (sodium), you can eat 100 grams of dried apricots and some potatoes. The more potassium, the faster and better the body works. However, do not forget about certain restrictions: the allowable dosage of potassium is 4-5 grams per day.

100 grams of supermarket smoked sausage contains about 2 milligrams of sodium. 000 grams of industrial cheese contains 100 milligrams of this element. This concentration already covers the daily dose of the body, but is anyone limited to a few slices of sausage / cheese per day? The higher the dosage of sodium in the diet, the more the body requires potassium and water to remove excess. Sodium surplus leads to edema, hypertension and deterioration of kidney function.

What you need to know about iodized salt

Iodized salt is one of the varieties of edible table salt. ^[4]. The only difference is that it contains potassium iodide and potassium iodate. ^[5]. These components fight iodine deficiency in the body. Why is it necessary to fill the lack of iodine with salt? The deficit can still be harmonized with the help of various types of seafood. Due to their high cost, not every segment of the population can afford to buy scallops or shrimp every day. Most of the population of the post-Soviet space has been suffering from iodine deficiency since the 60s. The USSR authorities partially solved the problem through the industrial production of iodized salt and targeted drug prevention of certain risk groups. After the collapse of the USSR, the program ceased, and this problem of health care again became before the created states. Lack of iodine leads to disruption of the thyroid gland and disruption of the entire endocrine system.

Not only the Soviet countries, but also Denmark, Serbia, and the Netherlands faced iodine deficiency. ^[6][7].

Iodine deficiency problem

Iodine is one of the fundamental components for the normal life of mammals. This trace element is rarely found in the earth’s crust. Naturally, iodine is formed only in a certain climate, most often near sea coasts. Regions, in the soil, water and air of which there is a low level of this element, are simply obliged to introduce additional programs to saturate the body with iodine ^[8].

Worldwide, iodine deficiency is the leading cause of mental retardation. About 38 million children are born every year in the world at risk of iodine deficiency. It is important that this problem can be prevented by preventive measures. ^[9].

Factors of development of iodine deficiency:

• low content of the trace element in food and soil (first of all, the areas most remote from the seas suffer);
• Selenium deficiency (in case of selenium deficiency, the body ceases to absorb iodine);
• pregnancy (depletion of mother’s resources);
• radiation exposure;
• gender (women are more prone to iodine deficiency than men);
• drinking and smoking;
• reception of oral contraceptives;
• the increase in the concentration of goitrogenic substances in the blood plasma;
• age indicator (small children are more susceptible to pathology than adults).

How to determine iodine deficiency? To do this, it is enough to go for a visit to the doctor and pass the appropriate analysis. The first symptoms of the pathology are easily confused with the usual fatigue or poor quality of life: hair loss, excessive dryness of the skin, drowsiness, apathy, decreased performance, stratification of the nail plate.

It is impossible to eliminate iodine deficiency with the help of one-time measures. Public health is obliged to introduce a controlled system of prevention. That is why iodized salt is legally enshrined in the food industry, and the population has uninterrupted access to the product. ^[10].

It is believed that the concentration of iodine in salt is so negligible that it simply cannot adequately compensate for the lack of a trace element. The concentration of iodine is really minimal, but the methodical use of the product still leads to harmonization of the balance and does not cause a surplus. It is white salty crystals that are the most popular seasoning. We are accustomed to their taste and add them to almost every dish every day, so do not write off iodized salt and introduce it into the diet on a periodic/permanent basis. ^[11].

Additional additives

Salt is also enriched with iron and fluorine. The introduction of both iron and iodine makes salt a multicomponent substance, which is complicated by a number of chemical, organoleptic, and technical problems. The main thing is that iron does not react with iodine. To avoid this, a microencapsulated compound of iron and stearin is used.

Along with a lack of iodine, the body may also need fluoride. This component protects tooth enamel from caries and improves the dental health of the population.

Contraindications to use

A healthy person can safely consume iodized salt ^[12]. Direct contraindications for use are thyroid cancer, furunculosis, tuberculosis, abnormal work / failures in the functionality of the thyroid gland, kidney disease, hemorrhagic diathesis, chronic pyoderma.

If you decide to introduce iodized salt into your diet, then do not forget that it has a limited shelf life. After the expiration of the implementation period, iodine loses its beneficial properties and ceases to be a valuable food product. It is necessary to store the component in a tightly closed container, which is protected from ultraviolet radiation.

Is it possible to use iodized salt for beauty treatments?

You can make a high-quality scrub or a nourishing body bath from white crystals, but iodized salt was created not for cosmetic, but for medicinal procedures. The component simply will not be able to provide the desired care. He is not:

• moisturizes;
• vitaminizes;
• softens;
• nourishes the skin.

Sea salt is perfect for the role of a beauty ingredient, but iodized salt is best left to cook and make up for iodine deficiency. In extreme cases, the component can be used as a scrub if there are no more effective alternatives nearby.

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