There are two kinds of table salt in the world.

We'll call them "regular old" table salt and "fancy" table salt. Sacred Valley Salt is one kind of "fancy" salt. There are many, many other kinds of fancy salt out there as well. What they all have in common is that fancy salt costs a lot more than regular old salt. Sometimes, there are good reasons, and sometimes, it's just a bunch of ...

To begin with, let's get one thing straight:

There's nothing wrong with regular old table salt.

A container regular old Morton Iodized Salt

Skull and crossbones symbol, internationally recognized to mean toxic or poison

Some purveyors of fancy salt would have you believe that it is toxic or somehow pollutes your body. It’s true that regular old salt has additives. It may be fortified with iodine (which has historically helped millions of people who might otherwise suffer from iodine deficiency). Iodized salt also often contains some sugar, which, although you might not want it in there, certainly isn’t poisonous. Anti-caking agents, like sodium or potassium ferrocyanide, concern a lot of people. In high concentrations they are, in fact, harmful. But the concentrations found in regular-old salt are relatively low. So the bottom line is: regular old salt has a regular old flavor, and it has some ingredients that you may not want in your salt. But fear-mongering related to regular old salt is just hype.

So you're not buying the hype about how scary regular old salt is, but you are interested in some fancy salt on its own merits. Still, if you are going to pay good money for fancy salt, you're entitled to know what you're actually getting.

Let's cut through some more hype.

The "Purest Salt on Earth"??

This claim is widely publicized by companies who sell a particular kind of fancy salt - Himalayan Pink Salt. Let’s think about this for a second. What is pure table salt? sodium chloride.

And what color is sodium chloride? Not pink.

The pink in Himalayan Pink Salt comes from iron oxide. And, of course, the common name for iron oxide is...

You got it - rust. Not that some trace rust is a bad thing. Trace amounts of other minerals are what give fancy salts unique flavors. When it comes to salt flavor, impurities are good.

But to claim that salt with any color whatsoever is the “Purest on Earth” is preposterous hype and an insult to the consumer’s intelligence.

Magnified image of sodium chloride crystals

Rust - the compound that gives Himalayan Pink Salt its pinkness

"Contains 84 Minerals Your Body Needs!"

Type "himalayan pink salt" into Google, and this claim pops up everywhere. Impressive...

...but just hype.

A list of these 84 "necessary" minerals can be found here. Many of the elements on the list aren’t minerals, many of them are not at all needed by your body, and some of them are poisonous. The salt itself is harmless, since the quantities of most of these elements are basically undetectable. But if there really were actually any meaningful quantities of uranium, lead, plutonium or thallium... you'd be better off without them. You can get more info from someone more qualified that we are from this website. It's an informative read.

Health Hype

Common Fancy Salt Health Claims

Aids in vascular health
Supports healthy lungs and respiratory function
Promotes a stable pH balance within the cells
Reduces the signs of aging
Promotes healthy sleep patterns
Increases libido
Prevents muscle cramps
Increases hydration
Strengthens bones
Lowers blood pressure
Improves circulation
Detoxifies the body of heavy metals

A satirical image of a woman who is healthy and beautiful from eating fancy salt

Technically speaking, these claims aren't false. But they're saturated with hype. The question is, is it the fancy salt in particular that offers these health benefits? No.

This is simply a list of the benefits of not having a salt deficiency in your body.

Not being salt-deficient helps you to sleep, stay hydrated, have better circulation, better vascular health, etc. Any old salt will do the trick.

If your salt contains some micro-nutrients that your body needs, that’s a plus. But the amount of salt you eat is trivial in comparison to the amount of food you eat. If you want better health, eat more of this stuff, and just let the salt enhance the flavor.

A plate of vegetables that will improve your health if you eat them. Salt will enhance their flavor.

Bottom Line: If you're going to pay good money for fancy salt, make sure you're getting real value in return, rather than just paying for a bunch of empty hype.

As with all types of salt, Sacred Valley Salt won't make you younger, smarter, or better looking. It has no spiritual or metaphysical properties. But if you want a finishing salt with a vivid, bright flavor, you feel good about purchases that help other people and are easy on the environment, or you just think it's nifty to try salt from one of the world's most unique and historic salt sources, then this "fancy" salt is well worth it.