For years, people have hailed the benefits of pink salt, but is it actually better for us than regular table salt? Here, we speak to the experts to debunk the myths behind this health ‘hack’.
Opting for pink salt over regular table salt has been a topic of conversation in the wellness world for years. Recently, the discussion came up for debate again when Oprah Winfrey was targeted by deep-fake online advertisements that showed her promoting pink salt as a ‘weight loss’ hack.
While Oprah took to social media to de-bunk the advertisements as fake, it poses the question: does pink salt have any real health benefits? Here, we speak to experts to find this out, and also ask whether it can really help promote weight loss, or if that’s just another wellness myth.
Is Himalayan pink salt good for you?
“Himalayan salt is pink due to its magnesium content — a mineral that I see a lot of clients in need of, and a large portion of the population are deficient in,” explains nutritional therapist Helena Barham-Coppola.
Magnesium is important as it turns the food we eat into energy. Helena adds the caveat that salt has 1mg of magnesium per 100g, but a 28g piece of 70% dark chocolate has 65mg of magnesium — “far more potent!”.
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Does pink salt help you lose weight?
According to Angela Clucas, founder of Next Level Nutrition, pink salt health claims are not scientifically backed by peer-reviewed research. Further to that, Helena adds that too much salt intake can actually result in gaining “water weight”. So, it would be wise to take weight-loss claims with a pinch of salt (no pun intended).
Himalayan pink salt trick for detoxing
There are multiple juice cleanse plans, lymphatic treatments and massages promising detoxing effects — but all at a high price point. Unfortunately, pink salt is by no means a more affordable alternative.
“Detoxification, inflammation, pH balancing, these are all really complex areas and adding in just one ingredient isn’t going to be a magic fix,” Helena explains. She adds “focusing on hydration with perhaps a pinch of pink salt to help with electrolytes, I often find beneficial.”
‘Detoxification’ is a process that our bodies do all the time, so the claim that salt can replace that is, according to Helena, “a sure indicator of a fad”.
“If you want to tackle these complex issues, you need to look at the whole picture [such as] increasing fibre, good-quality protein, getting the right amount of exercise, looking after mind-body health — I could go on.”
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Table salt vs pink Himalayan salt: which is better?
There’s a burgeoning trend of people swapping out regular table salt for Himalayan pink salt in their cooking. Angela warns that, while pink salt does contain more minerals than table salt, we should still be wary of consuming too much salt.
Helena explains: “Some table salt contains ingredients like anti-caking agents, which I aim to avoid.” Instead, she suggests opting for pink salt in your everyday cooking, but to always check the label to ensure it’s pure Himalayan pink salt.
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