Himalayan Rock Salt
What is
Himalayan Rock Salt and where can I get it...?
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| Salt Mine Khewra in Pakistan |
Himalayan Rock Salt known for its
ability to stimulate blood circulation, lower blood pressure and remove nasty
toxins such as heavy metals from the human body, Himalayan Pink Salt has been
used for many generations to help heal the body and mind.
Himalayan Rock Salt comes from a
time when planet Earth was a pristine ecosystem, over 250 million years ago.
Himalayan salt is a marketing term for Halite (rock salt) from Pakistan, which being
sold in Europe, North America, and Australia in the early 21st century. It is
mined in the Khewra Salt Mines located in Khewra, Jhelum District, Punjab,
Pakistan, about 300 km from the
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| Railway Trap in Salt Mine |
Himalayas in the foothills of the Salt Range.
The salt sometimes comes in a reddish or pink color, with some crystals having off-white
to transparent color. It is commonly used for cooking similar to regular table
salt, brine, and bath products. According to the new research Himalayan rock
salt contains 88 trace elements and iron.
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| Salt Lumps Obtained from Mine |
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| Chunks, Grainul & Mash form of Himalayan Salt |
Importance of Salt:
Salt is a mineral substance composed
primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the
larger class of ionic salts; salt in its natural form as a crystalline mineral
is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quantities in the sea
where it is the main mineral constituent, with the open ocean having about 35
grams (1.2 oz) of solids per litre, a salinity of 3.5%. Salt is essential
for animal life, and saltiness is one of the basic human tastes. The tissues of
animals contain larger quantities of salt than do plant tissues; therefore the
typical diets of nomads who subsist on their flocks and herds require little or
no added salt, whereas cereal-based diets require supplementation. Salt is one
of the oldest and most ubiquitous of food seasonings, and salting is an
important method of food preservation.
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| Sea Salt |
Some
of the earliest evidence of salt processing dates back to around 6,000 years
ago, when people living in Romania were boiling spring water to extract the
salts; a salt works in China has been found which dates to approximately the
same period. Salt was prized by the ancient Hebrews, the Greeks, the Romans,
the Byzantines, the Hittites and the Egyptians. Salt became an important
article of trade and was transported by boat across the Mediterranean Sea,
along specially built salt roads, and across the Sahara in camel caravans. The
scarcity and universal need for salt has led nations to go to war over salt and
use it to raise tax revenues. Salt is also used in religious ceremonies and has
other cultural significance.
Salt
is produced from salt mines or by the evaporation of seawater or mineral-rich
spring water in shallow pools. Its major industrial products are caustic soda
and chlorine, and it is used in many industrial processes and in the
manufacture of polyvinyl chloride, plastics, paper pulp and many other
products. Of the annual production of around two hundred million tones of salt,
only about 6% is used for human consumption; other uses include water
conditioning processes, de-icing highways and agricultural use. Edible salt is
sold in forms such as sea salt and table salt which usually contains an anti-caking
agent and may be iodized to prevent iodine deficiency. As well as its use in
cooking and at the table, salt is present in many processed foods. Too much
sodium in the diet raises blood pressure and may increase the risk of heart
attacks and strokes. The World Health Organization recommends that adults
should consume less than 2,000 mg of sodium (5 grams of salt) per
day.
