Practice Savory Eating: Use a Condiment

American Thinker ^ | October 15, 2010 | Rod Jaros

[neverdem]

I consume a politically incorrect amount of table salt. It's not often that the taste of my food cannot be enhanced by a supplemental sprinkling of this much-maligned condiment.

Occasionally, my thoughts turn salty, especially when confronted by one of those elfin, formal dining table shakers. You know, the ones with the bullet-like cap and one tiny hole that defies passage except by one grain at  a time, and not without athletic effort. I much prefer something on the order of perhaps a small mason jar, maybe with a side handle. I avoid low-sodium food products like the plague. They are without exception bland -- epicurean failures of the first order. If you don't believe me, open a can of the "Healthy Request" version of chicken noodle soup offered by the country's premier producer of canned soups. M'm. M'm. Bad!

At table, I don't like being cautioned about salt's presumed harmful properties by a gasping, well-intentioned, vigilant member of the thoroughly indoctrinated salt police. "Salt's bad for you!" Case closed. What an unfortunate, uninformed commentary on a mineral that at different times in history has been seen symbolically as a sign of fidelity, usefulness, and strength, used in Roman times even as a medium of exchange. The truth is that the question of salt's effect on general health has been a matter of scientific debate for many decades absent a conclusive finding. The case is far from closed.

Despite the absence of hard evidence that the general application of dietary salt is harmful, our government has initiated a plan to poke its nose under my dining table, and it looks as though I may soon have to consider stockpiling my favorite condiment.

The food and drug regulators (FDA), not content with safeguarding the populace against the real threats of, say, salmonella or mad cow disease, have decided to wage war on secondhand salt. Of course, they've hand picked the mandatory so-called "panel of experts" to help them intrude into my pantry. The FDA is proposing over a ten-year period to require food producers to substantially, but gradually, reduce the sodium content in all food products -- in other words, to make them taste like the cardboard they're packaged in. With this ten-year sleight of hand, they hope to dupe the palates of American diners, who they say will, over time, get used to blandness...for their own good, of course.

It hasn't exactly been a secret that too much salt may not be good for some diners. I say "may not" and "some" because despite doctors knowing for more than a hundred years about a connection between salt consumption and elevated blood pressure, there is no consensus on whether or not restricting the use of dietary salt is a good idea for everyone. This after 20,000 studies on the subject. It makes about as much sense to take away everyone's salt options as it would to mandate that everyone exercise or lose weight or quit smoking because these impositions will also benefit the hypertensive.

It's estimated that 75 million Americans have "high" blood pressure. That is a large number for sure, but if those on the high side choose not to voluntarily limit salt intake in their own best interest, even after years of anti-salt government and medical profession harping, is it fair that overreaching regulation should deny upwards of 225 million of us our version of an appetizing meal? Have a strong heart and low blood pressure? Too bad. If they can't or shouldn't have salt, neither can you. Kind of reminds one of the Obama/Pelosi/Reid ill-considered plan to ruin medical care (and the economy to boot) for the majority of Americans in the cause of providing for 30 million uninsured. Sometimes the government giveth, and sometimes it taketh away. No matter which, the majority usually suffers at the hands of ideologues who are not worth their salt.

I need a fix. Please pass the anchovies...and the saltines.

Rod Jaros is a retired public school educator, formerly employed by one the of Northeast's most progressive school systems.

[Joe 6-pack]

I try to go through one of these each week :-)

What I like is that you can adjust the size of the grains for coarseness depending on what you're salting.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

"Salt's bad for you!"

No, it isn't.

If you have certain types of health problems you might want to keep an eye on how much of it you eat but salt is necessary for life.

A friend of mine has Hyperkalemia (high potassium) which means that the "low salt" stuff is poison to her and she has to be careful about her intake of things like, apples, bananas, brown rice, beans, orange juice, potatoes and a whole host of other stuff that is considered "healthy food".

I love salt and I eat a lot of it, if I cut down then I start feeling ill and my blood pressures drops dangerously low. This happened a couple of times when I let someone talk me into a "healthy low salt diet." My doctor told me that if she ever heard of me doing that again she was going to slap me.

You body knows what it needs and no paper pushing bureaucrat should be able to tell you what you should or should not eat.

[alfa6]

LOVE V8 juice, but it's really high in sodium, and the low sodium version really sucks...

I have found that by mixing 1 can of regular V-8 and 1 can of the low sodium V-8 that it ain't that bad. The only hassle is finding a container to hold the two cans of V-8.

An empty 32 oz Gatorade bottle works okay:-)

Regards

alfa6 ;>}

[Smokin' Joe]

See post 19 and the link.

[sheana]

Hubby is a pepperholic. Regardless of where we are the top of the shaker comes off so he can pepper his food.

[NewJerseyJoe]

This happened to me, during a period when I was drinking a LOT (1+ gallon) of water each day. Couldn’t understand the constant headaches, dizziness, “mini-blackouts” (lasting a few seconds). Only when I got sick with something and restricted my water intake did I notice a change — that my salt-deficient syptoms disappeared within hours. Thankfully, I made the connection. When I did some research, I discovered that I’d been peeing all my electrolytes down the drain for the previous two months.

I still drink a good amount of water, but I monitor the amount. And I’m sure to add a sprinkle of salt to almost every meal.

[OldPossum]

I absolutely agree. Many foods are yucky without salt. Heck, I knew one guy who even salted his bacon!

As for the stockpiling, I already have begun that. I figure that when and if TSHF a pound of salt might be a valuable medium of exchange.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Yes, I inherited it from Eric.

[Smokin' Joe]

You were fortunate, indeed.

I am a firm believer that we manifest our dire nutritional needs as cravings for foods (or sometimes non-food substances) which contain nutrients we need.

People who eat what tastes good to them tend to get what they need. If I need more salt in my diet, it just plain tastes good.

I had suspected something when Chronic fatigue syndrome was announced not long after our media had gone on a huge low salt/no salt kick, and wondered if the two were related. I do not have high blood pressure, so I did not restrict my salt intake as many others who should not have did.

[Graybeard58]

I LOVE V8 juice, but it's really high in sodium

Me too but I have to add salt.

[Graybeard58]

Many are the times that I've just unscrewed the cap to shake out a righteous amount of pepper.

My wife does that all the time with scrambled eggs, she literally covers them. Not that she loves pepper so much, she says she doesn't like to look at the eggs.

She did it in a restaurant once and a waitress noticed her eggs as she was passing by and said, "Oh, my goodness, did someone leave the pepper lid loose for you"? and offered to bring her some more eggs.

[hadit2here]

I absolutely refuse to buy or eat (if I can help it) ANY product that says it’s “low fat”, “diet”, “light” (lite), “low salt” or “low sodium”, “sugar free” or most anything that has some “healthy” krap(tm) on the label [especially the damn “artificial sweeteners” that will cause cold sores to break out in 10 min.] And I actually READ the list of contents on anything I’m not familiar with.

Occasionally, I stop and McDonald’s and get a Big Mac meal. I just happen to like the taste of a Big Mac once in a while. But the place I usually go to has stopped putting the condiments like salt, pepper, catsup, etc. out on the counters. So I make a point of asking the person for four (4) salt packets. Then I put the bag on the counter and proceed to pour all four of them on the fries. I’m just waiting (and hoping for) some health obsessed busybody to say something to me about it.

I’ll say, “You know, it’s really upsetting that my medical lab gave you the results of my blood tests. Just how much do you know about hyponatremia and its effects? Now, exactly which medical school is it that you got your medical doctor’s degree from? I think you should go get your money back because you just showed just how ignorant their graduates are. But really, thanks for your concerns about MY health. When you get to the point where you have achieved optimum good health, then I might start to listen to something you might have to say. Good day!”

I don’t have hyponatremia, to my knowledge, but I’ve found that most supposed health obsessed busybodies wouldn’t even know what it was [or that salt is sodium [Na]+ chloride (Cl)- too many syllables for them] and I rarely get sick. Been to the doc’s once in about the last 25 years. Self diagnose and treat most anything I got when everyone else I know is running to the doc or having to go to the ER or hospital for some damn thing and getting sick all the time.

Unfortunately for me and my curmudgeonly disposition, nobody has said a word to me about the salt thing. Guess I’m gonna have to get more obvious about it.

[FreedomPoster]

Pepper has no business being in a shaker, at least for anything remotely resembling real food. Fresh peppercorns in a grinder is the only way to fly. You lose too much aromatic goodness with pre-ground pepper.

[thulldud]

Unfortunately for me and my curmudgeonly disposition....

There oughta be a curmudgeon's ping list. I'd join that one in a high-fat, sodium-rich heartbeat. I always tell the family that when I grow up, that's I wanna be. (They say I already am. A curmudgeon, that is, not grown-up.)

Saw the first line of yer post and knew it would be a good'un.

[VisualizeSmallerGovernment]

I've been on a sodium restricted diet off and on for years.

Table salt isn't generally a significant source of sodium. A pinch of salt on your food is probably going to add about 80 to 100 mg of sodium, tops, and it's going to add real flavor. Brining, on the other hand, can add lots of sodium. So the food police get people to eat low fat protein, such as chicken or turkey. Then, to make it palatable, the stuff is soaked in salt water. A fast food chicken patty might contain 1,000 mg of sodium, while a beef patty at the same restaurant might have 200.

Another real culprit is bread. A 12 inch sub roll typically contains 900 mg of sodium, and upwards of 2600 mg for some varieties. A bag of potato chips, on the other hand, typically contains about 250 mg.

Low sodium versions of salty foods typically fail, just as meatless hamburgers / hot dogs typically fail. If you're watching your salt intake, it's better to eat something that tastes good but doesn't have much salt in the first place. Spaghetti or rice instead of bread, beef instead of chicken / turkey. Fruit, etc.

[Yardstick]

I can relate. I accidentally bought a thing of the low salt V8 last week. I took one swig of it and tossed it. Felt terrible about the waste but knew there was no way I’d drink that stuff. Just awful. The problem is that it’s not just low salt - they also put potassium salt and sugar in it which gives it a weird wang.

BTW, maybe I’m crazy but to me V8 tastes best in the big half-gallon cans. I don’t know if it’s because there’s no exposure to UV light that way or what, but to me it tastes fresher.

[Keith in Iowa]

>>>It is salty but not salt.

It’s salt and then some...

Ingredients: iodized salt, starch, monosodium glutamate, hydrogenated vegetable oil, spices, spice extracts (with celery). Warning: May contain traces of eggs, soy, wheat, milk and mustard!

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[MarkL]

BTW, maybe I’m crazy but to me V8 tastes best in the big half-gallon cans. I don’t know if it’s because there’s no exposure to UV light that way or what, but to me it tastes fresher.

I like it better too, and in the small cans as well (which I buy for work). I think that the acid in the juice leeches some of the steel from the cans into the juice, which makes it better. :-)

Mark

[Berlin_Freeper]

I misunderstood what iodized is but with all the other stuff it must be a small amount. I'm going to look for another though.