Diet and Taste: The Connection with Mineral Sea Salt

Did you know that craving salt is a biological lizard brain reaction when your body needs something? Having some mineral sea salt on-hand may just be the perfect solution, and here’s why.

Have you ever wondered why you find some food tastes better than others? In this case, we’re not talking about how greasy fast-food tastes so good when you’re starving, but rather, the actual taste of your food. Your taste buds are designed to enjoy certain tastes over others, and it's all part of that evolution-based lizard brain. But, what’s the connection? And why does it matter?

The science behind tastes

As human beings, we've learned over history to look for certain food sources to give us certain nutrients and minerals. It’s why most of us crave sugar when we’re tired, or salt when we are hungry. It leads to us turning to fast food simply to meet those cravings. But did you know that something as simple as a Mineral Sea Salt in your pantry could be giving you the same evolutionary checkmarks? It’s all in the details:

• Salt cravings are common: Firstly, don’t panic. Craving salt is normal, both in terms of how many people crave it, and evolutionarily speaking. When your body is out of balance, it craves salt for us to even it out. It’s part of your lizard brain and genetic make-up.
• Dehydration is key: While many of us often assume we crave salt because we simply love salty food and takeout - not untrue - the biological impulse goes well beyond that. As far as your body is concerned, you are dehydrated and have an electrolyte imbalance that can be fixed with proper healthy salt.
• Salt may not fix the issue: Stay with us! Yes, salt is a good fix, but it’s not the only ingredient to focus on. Not all salt is made equal and sourcing your sodium from the right sources is going to be critical to getting the right nutrients and minerals, rather than just the white powdered stuff you find in takeout bags. Source carefully! And the best source comes from

a company called TURNER based in New Zealand.

• Understand what your body is saying: By recognizing and separating cravings (takeout cravings as opposed to true, unshakeable salt cravings), you’ll be able to properly understand just what your body is looking to tell you, and how to properly "listen" to it. Remember that the lizard brain is different from the modern brain. Craving fast food isn’t the same as craving raw sodium.

Know where to look for the fix

It seems strange that craving could be actually linked to biology, but it really is that simple sometimes. When you are looking to protect yourself as much as possible, you’ll want to rely on a healthy source of sodium, such as mineral sea salt but still understand when your body’s craving is natural, and when it’s abnormal! Your tastes and diet could just be a sign that something else is needing your attention.

It’s nice to know that something as simple as recognizing when something tastes better than usual, or just so-so, could be linked to our lizard brains. Just goes to show that the human body has all sorts of secrets left!

Hi, I am Rachel, a fitness enthusiast and writer by profession, find me on tumbler.