Here's an interesting article I found to inform us of the Health Benefits of Sea Salt. I have copied and pasted it here, or you can go directly to it here: http://www.health-benefit-of-water.com/sea-salt.html
"Health Benefits of Sea Salt - Learn about Sea Salt and its extraordinary health benefits
We all know already that our body is 75% water. Well, maybe not all of us know is that this water contained in all of our tissues, cells, blood, etc. is a salty water solution, very similar to the seawater...
So, why are we often told that salt is not good for our health?
Is salt good or bad for us?
Here are the topics of this page:
- Health benefits of Sea salt
- Nutrition facts about salt
- Halotherapy
- Talassotherapy
- Water and Salt, The Essence of Life
In the study made by Inter-University of Graz, Austria, patients who drank FIJI Water together with the Original Himalayan Crystal Salt saw significant positive changes in respiratory, circulatory, organ, connective tissue and nervous system functions. Patients also reported increases in the quality of sleep, energy and concentration levels, brain activity, weight loss, enhanced consciousness and noticeable nail and hair growth.
- For a more comprehensive summary of the study findings, read the book Water and Salt, The Essence of Life by Barbara, Dr Hendel and biophysicist Peter Ferreira.
Natural Sea Salt re-balances entire body - explains the book:
- Salt is most effective in stabilizing irregular heartbeats and, contrary to the misconception that it causes high blood pressure, it is actually essential for the regulation of blood pressure - in conjunction with water. Naturally the proportions are critical.
- Salt is vital to the extraction of excess acidity from the cells in the body, particularly the brain cells.
- Salt is vital for balancing the sugar levels in the blood; a needed element for diabetics.
- Salt is vital for the generation of hydroelectric energy in cells of the body. It is used for local power generation at the sites where energy is needed.
- Salt is vital to the nerve cells' communication and information processing all the time that the brain cells work, from the moment of conception to death.
- Salt is vital for absorption of food particles through the intestinal tract.
- Salt is vital for the clearance of the lungs of mucus plugs and sticky phlegm, particularly in asthma and cystic fibrosis.
- Salt is vital for clearing up catarrh and congestion of the sinuses.
- Salt is a strong natural antihistamine.
- Salt is essential for the prevention of muscle cramps.
Value of Salt for our Nutrition
Carbondale Center for Macrobiotic Studies explains that:
"Salt is the great purifier, and protector of health. Why go to all the trouble to discharge animal protein-derived salt from your body? Because being able to absorb the proper amount of salt is essential to maintaining the proper isotonic balance of salt in the blood, and protecting us from infectious disorders.
Our blood should be salty to protect ourselves from disease. The Gospel of Mark quotes Jesus as teaching, "Salt is good…therefore, have salt in yourselves and live at peace, one with another."
Table salt vs. unrefined sea salt
Salt obtained from solar evaporation of sea water is entirely different from modern refined salt, and it contains a variety of minerals that play a role in keeping the body's electrolytes in a healthy balance.
The common table salt, we use today is primarily kiln-dried sodium chloride with anti-caking agents added. Trace minerals, as well as calcium, magnesium and potassium salts are removed in processing. Kiln-drying involves scorching salt at high heat to remove moisture. This refining process creates a product that is unnatural and hard on the body. It is the true culprit that contributes to high blood pressure, heart trouble, kidney disease and eczema, among other problems.
Even many salts labeled “sea salt” are washed or boiled, which removes minerals and trace elements from the salt. These salts are absolutely toxic to the body. Beware of "Sea salt" tells the Salt Institute
Today many people cannot tolerate the amount of salt required to remain healthy. As a result getting sick from time to time has become an inescapable aspect of the human condition we take for granted.
Sea Salt Therapy:
Sea salt brings natural relief of breathing discomforts:
Halotherapy, or Salt Therapy (halos=salt in Greek) is a therapeutic use of dry aerosol salt particles. This is related to Speleotherapy (speleos=cave in Greek), which is prolonged exposure to the specific microclimate of caves, salt mines and grottos.
Speleotherapy has been practiced in salt mines of Eastern Europe for centuries. Patients with asthma, chronic bronchitis, and other respiratory diseases spend days or weeks in the mines breathing the salt air and benefitting from other aspects of the mines' microclimate as well.
Many countries, including Austria, Armenia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Kirgizia, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, and Ukraine, have Speleotherapy clinics.
Respiratory diseases are a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Most drug therapies of respiratory diseases have only palliative effects, and many have significant side effects, especially those with corticoids or steroids. So, a physical therapy like Halotherapy is much needed. Tells Dr. Darien L-F, PT, PhD
The Downtown Clinic, London, Ontario
Salt aerosol plays an important role in the relief of health problems, and is used for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, and other respiratory problems.
An internationally recognized Romanian invention, a Halotherapy device Salin, brings Speleotherapy to the comfort of your home in an affordable and convenient way.
The Salin device is an air salinizer that uses forced ionization of the indoor air by salt sublimation creating a micro climate of dry aerosol salt therapy in your living space. The salt microcrystals are under 5 m diameter and are able to penetrate deep into the lung.
The device has 4 clinical studies:
- Asthma and Chronic Bronchitis
- Allergic Rhinopathy
- Ear Infection in Children
- Cystic Fibrosis.
Based on the clinical studies, the inhaled saline has bactericide, mucokinetic, hydrophilic, anti inflammatory properties, reducing inflammation in the whole respiratory tract, absorbing edema from the mucosa lining the airway passages leading to widening of the airway passages, restoring the normal transport of mucus and unclog blockages in the bronchi and bronchioles leading to rapid elimination of the residual tar and foreign allergens.
LTiba
WebSite: www.salinetherapy.com
E-mail: halosense@salinetherapy.com
Phone: (519) 641-SALT (7258)
Sea Salt Bath
The sea salt bath helps reduce infection risks, and patients who followed treatments involving the use of seawater found that it also promoted pain relief.
Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine, discovered the therapeutic qualities of seawater by noticing the healing affects it had on the injured hands of fishermen.
It is now known that sea salt bath therapy is an effective treatment that assists in the rejuvenation of the cells and also induces a healthy exchange of minerals and toxins between the blood and the water.
Sea water has a history of therapeutic use. Its application to the body, warmed and usually combined with massage, is referred to as Thalassotherapy, originating from the Greek word thalassa.
Sea Salt:
In fact, salt has more than 14,000 uses. According to the Salt Institute, an Alexandria, Virginia-based organization that represents the salt industry (www.saltinstitute.org), salt can be used for everything from thawing ice to relaxing tired muscles.
"While most of us think of salt in terms of seasoning our food," says Bruce Bertram, technical director for the Salt Institute, "salt is an essential ingredient in a wide variety of consumer and industrial products, ranging from foods and animal feed to chemical feedstock and highway deicers. Life cannot exist without salt."
Salt was recognized as a necessity in human and animal nutrition more than 4,700 years ago in one of the earliest medical reference works found in ancient China. In the centuries since then, salt has been used as money, has ignited wars and was essential to preserving foods as recently as 100 years ago - before refrigeration. Salt even garnered more than 30 references in the Bible, including the infamous moment when Lot's wife looked back on the destruction of Sodom and turned into a pillar of salt.
But what about around your household? Can salt play a more versatile role than simply another ingredient in a favorite cookie recipe? You bet, says Ramona Bennett, a marketing manager with Cargill Salt. Cargill Salt's Diamond Crystal brand of iodized salt (recognized by its classic red-and-white canister) can be used in dozens of applications around the home. So can other types of salt that are common to many households, including kosher salt, low-sodium salt, canning and pickling salt and sea salt.
"Salt is extremely versatile," says Bennett. "It can be used to clean kitchens and bathrooms, remove stains in clothing, relieve stress when added to a warm bath, or even extend the life of brooms and sponges."
Tricks of the Trade
As most people know, there are some foods that simply wouldn't be the same without salt - like french fries, steak or popcorn. And although most people use it every day, it still holds some surprises for food and beverages.
For instance, when enjoying a glass of red wine, sprinkle some salt into the glass to bring out the fragrance and taste of the wine. Or try adding a pinch of salt on top of citrus fruits and you'll notice the fruit's crisp taste immediately.
Around the kitchen, you may want to try boiling eggs in salted water; it makes eggs easier to peel. And to test for freshness, place an egg in a cup of water and add a couple teaspoons of table salt - a fresh egg will sink, a spoiled egg will float. Table salt is good for preventing mold on cheese (add a pinch of salt the next time you wrap your cheese in plastic wrap) and keeping milk fresher longer (add a pinch to the carton or bottle). Salt also can eliminate the burned food odor from an oven and stovetop burners, and can cut odors and prevent grease build up in sinks.
Healthwise, gargling regularly during the winter months with an iodized salt and water mixture will alleviate sore throats. For fresher breath, blend equal parts of salt and baking soda in warm water and swish. Apply cotton pads soaked in salt water (one tablespoon of salt in a pint of hot water) to reduce puffy areas around the eyes.
Sea of Flavor
Sea salt, harvested from the ocean, has been used for several thousand years. It is ideal for bringing out the freshness in salads and greens; it tends to make lettuce and other vegetables crisper. When cooking, grilling, baking or broiling beef, pork, poultry and seafood, sea salt brings out the natural flavors of the meat.
Sea salt is also perfect for long, steamy baths at the end of the day. Add a cup of sea salt to a warm bath and soak for at least ten minutes. Sea salt has a healing effect - it pulls toxins from the body and soothes the skin. Scented oils can be added to the bath for both fragrance and to soften skin.
For a stimulating facial, mix equal parts of sea salt and olive oil. Gently massage the face and throat with long upward and inward strokes. Remove the mixture after five minutes and wash with mild soap and water.
Stress-Buster of the week:
At the end of the day - get a big bottle of the purest drinking water you can find.
Turn on relaxing music.
Light at least one candle and keep it near the tub.
Start up a steamy bath.
Add a cup of sea salt and relaxing scented oil such as lavender, rosemary and peppermint to the bath. (If you have a headache also add marjoram.)
Soak in your sea salt and oil soup for at least 10 minutes.
Finish off your bottle of water (at least 16 oz) as you soak.
Focus on the candle and the moment. Forget the day - it's over and you'll never see it again.
Info gathered from: http://www.links2love.com/health_2.htm
.jpg)