I have a love relationship with sea salt.  I have always craved it.....love the taste.....can't get enough of it.

What I am realizing is that there are foods that I overeat only if they have salt on them and that I love the taste of salt directly hitting my tongue.

Today I was having some basmati rice and ghee as part of my meal.  I decided to really taste it before adding the sea salt  mindlessly like I usually do (sea salt is neutral for me as a SWAMI hunter).  You know without the salt I could very easily just eat within the portion I am supposed to have.  

I did an experiment and sprinkled it liberally with my homemade chili powder and just a very small sprinkle of salt and found it was very good.  The chili powder really made my taste buds sing and hit all different parts of my tongue which is what I think I look to salt to do.  I know that if I was putting the amount of salt on it that I normally do, I would go back for more rice, when really I don't want more rice but to have my tastebuds engaged.

I am not going to give up salt completely but will try to use it to season my food when cooking it and not add any afterward.  I really want to be mindful in this new year about really tasting the food before adding salt directly on the food on my plate AND do I really want that specific food or do I want that food only because it is covered in salt?

Would love to hear how others have dealt with a salt craving.

Tea Rose

This is interesting...I am also a salt lover.  I've realized that the more salt I use, the more I need.  If I go cold turkey on salt then I'm fine.  It's all or nothing with me.  Maybe that's my AB extremes.

Yes Sharon - I agree with you that the more salt we use the more we seem to need/want it!  I am determined to try to season with other spices first!

I use kelp flakes to salt my things.  I ran out of grey sea salt about two weeks ago and haven't been able to pick some up.   I, actually, don't miss it.  Not sure how it is for your swami Tea Rose, but it is a super diamond for hunters.  

Supper tonight was oven fried rice with ghee, onions, mushrooms, parsley, garlic and asparagus with kelp flakes sprinkled on.  Yummilicious.  

Debra

Tea Rose, I've been experimenting with salt free options and the only things that trick my taste buds so far is lemon or lime sprinkled on things.  I've even squeezed lemon on rice to give it a salt taste. It has worked but I'll always crave salt on a sweet potato or squash.  I can't help myself...it's an addiction.

Quoted from Debra+

I use kelp flakes to salt my things.  I ran out of grey sea salt about two weeks ago and haven't been able to pick some up.   I, actually, don't miss it.  Not sure how it is for your swami Tea Rose, but it is a super diamond for hunters.  

Debra

I forgot about kelp flakes...I'll try using that again.

On my SWAMI Hunter - kelp is an avoid  

  awwww...remember sea salt is a neutral...not a super or a diamond.

Debra

I used to crave salt.  Now I have an appreciation for it.  My mom cooked with sea salt, so I got plenty of good minerals, but I still craved it until I went on the GTD.  Even when I was on the BTD I still had problems with both salt and sugar cravings.  

Tea Rose, it could be there's something in the salt that you truly need.  How about putting some in your drinking water?  Make sure you're using the colored stuff, not the bleached white stuff.  Grey salt is so flavorful!

I will debra+  

I had a really good day today with just using the barest minimum of salt and I am proud of myself!  The good thing about reducing the salt is that once the meal is over you can forget about it, unlike giving up sugar which messes with your blood sugar and can be a problem all day!

Funny thing is, when I went grainfree (which I did for a while) I never reached for the salt....on anything....strange? I was surprised by this....just found I never used salt. Now I eat grains again...not a lot...but I need salt on everything again.

Quoted from Ribbit

Tea Rose, it could be there's something in the salt that you truly need.  How about putting some in your drinking water?  Make sure you're using the colored stuff, not the bleached white stuff.  Grey salt is so flavorful!

Ribbit - I agree with you that there is probably something in the salt that I need - that is why I am not going to give it up completely.  

My plan is that I am going to continue with my homemade chili powder and maybe lime juice on foods first, taste it and then if it still needs something give a small shake of salt.

Good point on the minerals though - I do have some liquid minerals here, maybe I should take a dose of that each day!

Tea Rose

Quoted from jayneeo

Funny thing is, when I went grainfree (which I did for a while) I never reached for the salt....on anything....strange? I was surprised by this....just found I never used salt. Now I eat grains again...not a lot...but I need salt on everything again.

Wow - maybe the grains and salt correlate in some way!  And these are two of my major food problems along with dairy.

I crave it too.  But it doesn't make me eat more.  It just makes it taste better.  I think.  But I put garlic on everything like that too.  Garlic and salt.  If onions didin't bother me, I'd probably do it with them too.  And furthermore, I would put cumin on everything too, but it's just a neutral for me.  

Then on the other hand I eat ginger all the time, after I eat.

ABNoWay

I don't so much mean that the salt makes me hungrier, but rather that the salt makes a food taste so much better and so I eat more of it.  More a behavior I think or bad habit.  Kind of a search for the taste sensation.  In fact as I am typing this to you it reminds me that many times I think to myself that flavor would satisfy me, but in order to get flavor I guess the food (and calories) comes along with it!

Tea Rose

I am probably guilty of it too.  When I eat my grains, they taste so good with carob powder, stevia and sea salt, ghee and some berries and nuts that I probably eat more than I should.  However, I find that the induglence for me may be a good thing because if I cut that indulgence out, my weight goes backwards.  I have been trying to limit to one bowl instead of 1-1/2.  I don't eat grains all day until after supper a bit.  

I'm sure there is a fine line between what our body is telling us we need and what our tastebuds are telling us we need.  So I completely understand your predicament.  And I also think you are very in tune with your self to recognize it!  

ABNoway, I would put cumin on everything too! Why isn't it a superbennie? It just tastes like it is doing something important!

Thanks ABNW  - this love of salt has been a lifelong thing - I can remember as a child loving everything with salt and leaving the sugar behind for others!  

I love cumin too - a neutral for me.

Quoted from Tea Rose

I have a love relationship with sea salt.  I have always craved it.....love the taste.....can't get enough of it.

What I am realizing is that there are foods that I overeat only if they have salt on them and that I love the taste of salt directly hitting my tongue.

Today I was having some basmati rice and ghee as part of my meal.  I decided to really taste it before adding the sea salt  mindlessly like I usually do (sea salt is neutral for me as a SWAMI hunter).  You know without the salt I could very easily just eat within the portion I am supposed to have.  

I did an experiment and sprinkled it liberally with my homemade chili powder and just a very small sprinkle of salt and found it was very good.  The chili powder really made my taste buds sing and hit all different parts of my tongue which is what I think I look to salt to do.  I know that if I was putting the amount of salt on it that I normally do, I would go back for more rice, when really I don't want more rice but to have my tastebuds engaged.

I am not going to give up salt completely but will try to use it to season my food when cooking it and not add any afterward.  I really want to be mindful in this new year about really tasting the food before adding salt directly on the food on my plate AND do I really want that specific food or do I want that food only because it is covered in salt?

Would love to hear how others have dealt with a salt craving.

Tea Rose

I am right there with you my friend!

Quoted from Debra+

I use kelp flakes to salt my things.  I ran out of grey sea salt about two weeks ago and haven't been able to pick some up.   I, actually, don't miss it.  Not sure how it is for your swami Tea Rose, but it is a super diamond for hunters.  

Supper tonight was oven fried rice with ghee, onions, mushrooms, parsley, garlic and asparagus with kelp flakes sprinkled on.  Yummilicious.  

Debra

D, what is "grey" ss

As someone who has lived in the tropics where you (excuse me) sweat alot and has had low sodium in my blood tests and low blood pressure.  Maybe your body is telling you it need sodium, so if you crave salt (so long as your blood pressure is not high), go for it.  In hot weather you need more salt as it is lost in your sweat, also if your adrenals are fatigued (stress).

Read a book lately by Robert O Young about Ph (taking it with a grain of salt ha ha).  He said that salt neutralises acids on your body (grains are acid btw and contain phytates that inhibit mineral absorption, may be why Jay).  If you blame water retention on too much salt, that's wrong.  Your body retains fluids because it is dehydrated, to dilute acids.  When you retain water your sodium is being converted into potassium in the body to balance your pH.  You need MORE water and alkaline salts (e.g. sea salt not processed salt).  He recommends 3 - 4 grams a day of good salt, electron rich and alkaline like RealSalt or Celtic Salt.  

I didn't know what he was on about, good salt, now grey salt has triggered me off.  Found this site says that the whiter the salt the more processed it has been http://www.cea-life.com/minerals_health/seasalt.htm

I was addicted to soy sauce but have cut right back on that. I was also barely using table salt with an aluminium anti caking additive 554.  yuk!  Now I'm onto sea salt (standard supermarket white will get grey next time) on meals (a little soy sauce in asian meals) and the cravings are less (also bicarbonate of soda in water).  What grey salts do people recommend?  Are they only at HFS?

they may be found in gourmet stores as well as health food stores. there are other colors, even pink.
they may be Himalayan grey salt or french pink salt or whatever....or celtic...

Symbi,

I agree, I think we all need salt and I will never stop it completely  

Tea Rose

I crave sea salt and use too much of it.  When my son cooks, he uses more other herbs, spices and vegetables to add flavor and less salt.

When I was young, I never craved salt & we ate little of it. The more natural pure foods I eat, the more salt I crave & my BP has been low normal for years. Lately, it was more normal, but maybe it was 'white coat syndrome' when I went to the dr.  For several years, I use Hain sea salt. It's a cheaper brand, but so much better than the commerical stuff.  I never heard of sea salt(being commercially available, etc.) till about age 30. For Ribbit to grow up on it is wonderful.
I guess eating pure food shows that there is more potasium in it & that commercial food has sodium added(but not in the salt form).
I need the right amount of salt for the food to taste right. I doubt less salt would make me eat less, as it wouldn't be satisfying & I would want more! We are all so different. I'm glad whoever started this thread is able to eat less. What helps me eat a little less is early morning exercise, which rarely happens. It's so cold here & there are other distractions to keep me in the house till later in the day!