Enriched Salt

[kablooey]

Random idea:

Enriching salt with iodine has done an enormous amount of good at an extremely low cost.

Would it also be possible to enrich salt (or other non-perishable staple foods like flour, sugar, etc.) with other crucial nutrients? Such as vitamin A which can also do a lot of good?

In addition to doing good, does anybody think this would have any business/NGO potential?

p.s. I know jack squat about food chemistry, nutrition, manufacturing, etc. so please fill in any obvious blanks or correct any misconceptions I have.

[scorpio1980]

I would just eat a healthy diet and forget about the salt.

[kablooey]

Originally Posted by scorpio1980

I would just eat a healthy diet and forget about the salt.

Did you read the links in the original post?

I don't need enriched salt for myself...

[firenexx]

They already do this. Wheat flour is "enriched", and many other processed foods are "fortified" with nutrients. The general idea is they process a food to the point where it is not even fit for human consumption, then they add some cheap, synthetic, non-absorbable vitamins to it so they can say they made it healthy.

For instance, when they make milk, they ship it in unrefrigerated trucks to a big factory, where it is chemically separated into its main components, ultra-pasteurized (cooked, to remove the bacteria that grew while it was unrefrigerated), re-assembled into skin, 1%, 2%, whole, half and half, etc, fortified with calcium and vitamins D, B12, and others, and bottled. Please note that the vitamins they fortify it with are not actually vitamins D, B12, and others, they are just called that. They are really synthetic versions which look somewhat similar under a microscope but are synthesized from coal-tar and are not any good for you.

[ginkgo]

They already enrich unhealthy things like cereal made with refined wheat and sugar. They also enrich soft drinks. They could also enrich sugar, corn syrup, candy and cookies.

[scorpio1980]

Originally Posted by kablooey

Did you read the links in the original post?

I don't need enriched salt for myself...

Yes it was wiki article about how they add iodine to table salt. The fact is though that table salt is already a refined salt and is the reason they add something to it. If someone must eat salt use an unrefined version such as one of the sea salts. If you need extra iodine eat sea vegetables such as kelp. Ofcourse I understand the premise of your argument I think. It being that in poor nations they may not have cheap access to foods like kelp high in iodine, and small amounts of table salt is an easy way to supplement the diet. The problem though is refined anything is not a healthy way to go.

[firenexx]

Also, we have seen a recent re-surge in iodine deficiencies as well as goiter. This is mainly because doctors have been telling their old and middle-aged patients with high blood pressure "You have to cut back on salt" or "stop adding salt to your food." Well, most people (And I guess doctors) do not realize that nowadays, refined, iodised table salt is the only way that most people get iodine. So when they stop adding iodine to their food they get goiter.

I do not use refined table salt. Sea salt does contain iodine but only in a trace amount. I eat kelp, dulse, and other "sea vegetables." I get a very good amount of iodine daily. I will not get goiter.

[Clint Cora]

I've cut off table salt and sugar altogether and don't miss them at all.

[ginkgo]

For decades smart people could go to the store and buy a container of granulated kelp. But it was not sold by the sick-and-fat food store, but the health food store. You can sprinkle it on your food as if it were salt.

The kelp has lots iodine and also trace minerals that are missing from the soil.