Salt: What to Use Instead of Regular Table Salt
Dr. Boris Wydoff
Salt is one of those habits no one questions: people have always salted their food, and everyone does it. But table salt comes at a price, and the kidneys pay it. Refined sodium chloride retains water in the tissues, puts extra strain on the blood vessels, and makes it harder for the kidneys to do their main job — removing excess substances from the body.
How Regular Salt Differs from Natural Salt
Table salt is a highly refined product: everything except sodium chloride has been removed from it. Natural, unrefined sea salt — Celtic salt, for example — retains dozens of accompanying minerals, and the body handles it differently. In my kidney cleansing system, I recommend replacing regular salt with lemon juice or Celtic salt — it is best to buy it at a health food store.
Lemon Instead of the Salt Shaker
It may sound strange, but it works wonderfully: a few drops of lemon juice give food the brightness of flavor that usually makes us reach for salt. Salads, vegetables, legumes, soups — lemon works almost everywhere. After two or three weeks, your taste adjusts, and what once seemed like a “normal amount of salt” starts to taste overly salty.
When This Becomes Critical
- Kidney cleansing. During cleansing programs, regular salt is eliminated: it retains water and undermines the whole process. This is especially important if you already have sand or stones.
- Swelling and blood pressure. Water retained because of salt can mean both morning swelling and higher readings on the blood pressure monitor.
- “Hidden” salt. Most of the salt we eat does not come from the salt shaker: sausage, cheese, bread, sauces, canned foods. Remove processed foods, and you automatically remove a large part of the salt.
Common Mistakes
Giving up salt suddenly and completely in hot weather or during intense physical activity is not a good idea — the body needs minerals, so the replacement should be sensible, not zero. And “pink salt from the supermarket” is not necessarily the same as natural salt: check whether it has been refined.
CAUTION
If you have kidney or heart disease or take diuretics, discuss any changes with your doctor: in these cases, salt intake is part of your treatment.
Frequently asked questions
What can I use instead of salt in food?
Lemon juice — it adds brightness to the flavor of almost any dish — or a moderate amount of unrefined Celtic salt.
Why should I avoid salt during a kidney cleanse?
Salt retains water and makes it harder for the kidneys to remove dissolved waste — which defeats the purpose of the cleanse. Regular salt is eliminated for the duration of the program.
Where is most hidden salt found?
In processed foods: sausage, cheese, bread, sauces, and canned foods. Cutting them out reduces salt intake more than simply leaving the salt shaker empty.
Go deeper with Dr. Wydoff's materials
Azbuka zdorovya / The ABC of Health (e-book, Russian) →Full Body Reset — Personal 3-Month Program →
Boris Wydoff — naturopath and author, Ph.D. in nutrition. For over fifty years I have helped people restore health through nutrition, cleansing and the power of the mind — in Europe, America and Asia. About the author →