Time to rethink pink salt — study
SYDNEY: Pink salts may be prettier, but an Australian study has found that despite being touted as healthier, they have low levels of essential nutrients as well as a range of harmful heavy metals.
Independent research company Nutrition Research Australia tested 31 samples of pink salts.
There was a wide variation in the levels of nutrients in pink salt. Iron levels were between 0 and 17mg/100g and calcium between 53 and 574mg/100g.
Pink salt samples with higher concentrations of essential nutrients also had higher levels of heavy metals.
More alarmingly, some contained aluminium (up to 19mg/100g) and lead (up to 0.26mg/100g, with one exceeding national contaminant levels) — both heavy metals that are harmful if consumed longterm or in excess.
Pink salt contained more nutrients than white table salt, but for a meaningful contribution to the diet, consumption had to exceed the recommended sodium limit by more than 500%. — AAP