Driving down the street my nine-year-old, Joshua, asked me “Why do we use sea salt and not regular salt?” I don’t know what made him ask me that, but I’m grateful because I realized that I had never shared that information with you. In short, forgetting my own research, I told him we don’t use regular salt, or table salt, because the additives in it that aren’t good for you. That was not true. The truth is that, depending on the quality of your sea salt, sea salt is not always that much different than table salt.

Sodium content. Sea salt does have a slightly lower sodium content. Maybe this is why I find that I don’t use as much sea salt as table salt.

Mineral content. Some sea salts have been refined much in the same way as table salt, stripping them of most of their more than two dozen minerals, including the necessary nutrient iodine.

Taste content. Perhaps because of the minerals in sea salt that are lacking in table salt, I find that sea salt more fully flavors food.

One indicator of your sea salt being genuine is its brownish color, which is how the second layer of salt crystals dry after the sea water evaporates from it. This is “the layer that retains important minerals” (Sea Salt may be Healthier than Table Salt by Sheryl Walters). The refining process, like with table sugar, turns sea salt white.

As I frequently tell you, I want to share with you information that I have learned in an effort to heal myself naturally and help myself nutritionally. Don’t be fooled by marketing ploys like the labeling of products “all natural” or, in this case, “sea salt.” Just because products are labeled as such does not necessarily mean they are better for you. Research and find out for yourself.