5 Simple Tips To Eliminate Salt From Your Daily Diet

Lemon or vinegar can be two natural alternatives to eliminate salt from our diet and enjoy better health without sacrificing taste

Salt enhances the flavor of our dishes and, if we choose a quality one, it also provides us with beneficial nutrients for health. However, there are many people who want to reduce or eliminate salt and yet do not want to give up the pleasure of a tasty meal.

In this article we offer 5 tips to eliminate salt from your diet with some natural tips and keeping the flavor of the usual recipes. 

Differentiate common salt from sea salt

The first thing to know when reducing or eliminating salt from our diet is that not all salts are the same.

• Common salt or table salt which is a refined product made up of sodium chloride.  This not only does not provide us with any medicinal properties, but it can have some negative health effects.

• On the contrary, we have other salts, such as sea salt, Himalayan salt, Celtic salt, etc. that, although we must consume them in small quantities, they are foods rich in very healthy minerals and trace elements.

Why should we eliminate salt?

Excessive consumption of common salt can have the following effects on our health :

• Fluid retention.
• Arterial hypertension.
• Tiredness.
• Dryness of the skin
• Kidney problems
• Cardiovascular disorders
• Overweight.

It is important to know these symptoms so that we propose to reduce or eliminate salt from our diet with conviction, progressively but definitively.

1. Season with sea water

Sea water is the best alternative to salt, since it is a food of great nutritional wealth that is increasingly popular for its excellent health properties.

• Among other pathologies, seawater helps us treat all kinds of infections and diseases such as arthritis, osteoporosis, bronchitis or asthma.

• In turn, it prevents obesity and malnutrition.
• It also regulates the digestive system and alkalizes the body, which is a guarantee of good health.

2. Algae

Another way to obtain minerals and trace elements, among other nutrients, and to add a salty touch to some recipes, is to add seaweed to our soup dishes, stews, rice dishes, pasta or salads.

In addition, each of them has some specific characteristics, suitable for different recipes:

• Wakame: Gives creaminess to vegetable creams.
• Kombu: Softens legumes more easily.
• Sea spaghetti: It is excellent in salads.
• Dulse : It is made very quickly.
• Nori: It’s the seaweed to make sushi.

3. The lemon

Lemon is a medicinal food with many health properties that allows us to enhance the flavor of dishes and the virtues of food.

A fresh jet of lemon juice helps us to reduce the amount of salt, as well as to facilitate the assimilation of some nutrients such as iron.

We can add it to salads, sauces and vinaigrettes, soups, meat and fish. We will always do it at the last moment of cooking, just before consuming it.

4. Vinegar

Vinegar is a seasoning that gives a sour touch to food, so that, in small amounts, it can make it easier for us to reduce the salt in our dishes. 

There are different types of vinegar.

• However, if we want to benefit from the medicinal properties of this food, we must consume pure unpasteurized apple cider vinegar.
• This is the one that contains enzymes and natural ferments that have not been lost in the production process.

Vinegar is also very cleansing, so it helps us eliminate toxins from the body.

5. Hot spices

Finally, hot spices are the ideal condiment to reduce or eliminate salt from our recipes without losing flavor.

Here are the recommended spices:

• Black pepper: Excellent combination with meat and fish. If we mix it with turmeric and olive oil, we multiply its medicinal benefits.
• Cayenne pepper: Spicier than black pepper but with many health properties.
• Ginger: Ideal in meat and fish dishes. It also increases its juiciness and facilitates digestion.

To introduce the spicy into our diet we must do it little by little, progressively, so as not to suffer digestive discomfort and accustom our body to these strong flavors.