Maintains the ph balance of the body, regulates the blood pressure, provides relief to aching feet, reduces hair loss, boosts immune system, relieves muscle cramps, treats psoriasis, asthma and rhinosinusitis, proper brain muscle and functioning of nervous system, fights against depression, prevents dehydration, healthy skin and heart, great exfoliator, reduces risk of osteoarthritis, promotes good dental health, rheumatoid arthritis, regulates blood sugar levels and healing properties health benefits of sea salt during pregnancy.
As the name suggests, sea salt is the production of salt by evaporating ocean water or salt water from lakes. Bay salt and solar salt are some of its other names.
Earlier it was believed by the medical community that pregnant women should limit their intake of salt mainly because it contributes to bloating, increases water retention and blood pressure levels. However, with the course of time, medical community discovered its importance both for the mom-to-be as well as the baby.
As per the studies, it has been found that women who consume too much or too little salt during pregnancy are at a higher risk of giving birth to babies with certain kidney issues or heart problems. In this article, we will look at some of the benefits of sea salt during pregnancy:
Top 21 Health Benefits of Sea Salt During Pregnancy
Maintains the pH balance of the body
Celtic and Himalayan sea salts help in maintaining the pH balance of the body. You can either choose to consume a bittern of Celtic sea salt or a mixture of magnesium chloride and sea salt that will help to reduce the acidity in your blood.
Heart health
Sea salt consists of sodium, chloride and potassium that helps to conduct nerve impulses and also lead to muscle contractions. This is also the reason that it helps to maintain a regular heartbeat. However, there are no scientific evidences to prove the same.
Regulates the blood pressure during pregnancy
You would have probably been told to cut down on salt if you are suffering from high blood pressure. But it has been found that sea salt helps to reduce the blood pressure and hypertension in rats. Also, lower the blood pressure, lesser is the risk of cardiovascular diseases during pregnancy
Provides relief to Aching feet during pregnancy
Soaking your feet in sea salt bath can help to relax your aching feet. You can also add a few drops of rosemary, lavender and peppermint essential oil to a tub of warm water, in addition to the sea salt. This will help to treat the soreness and will also stimulate blood circulation.
Reduces Hair loss during pregnancy
You can massage your scalp with a sea salt solution, as that will help to increase the blood circulation. This will further stimulate hair growth in the affected area and will also strengthen the hair follicles.
Boosts immune system during pregnancy
Sea salt consists of minerals like iron, phosphorus, manganese, zinc, potassium, iodine that helps to strengthen the immune system. Also, the alkalizing effect of sea salt helps to protect you from a number of infectious diseases.
Relieves muscle cramps during pregnancy
This happens to me almost every single day and trust me, I know the discomfort it causes. The main reason is the loss of electrolytes from the body that can be prevented by consuming some sea salt, which we know is rich in electrolytes. Another option is to soak the affected area in sea salt bath. This will help you to stay hydrated and also prevent muscle cramps.
Treats psoriasis
As per a study by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel, a test was conducted to check the effectiveness of balneotherapy with dead sea salt for the treatment of psoriasis symptoms. As per the results, significant improvements were shown in a number of psoriasis symptoms. For instance, reduced spinal pain and movement.
Treats asthma
It is believed that sea salt helps to reduce inflammation and also treats asthma. You can sprinkle a pinch of it on your tongue after a glass of water and this will work just as well as an inhaler. Although this is just believed by people and there are no scientific evidences in support of this.
Proper brain muscle and functioning of nervous system
Your body needs electrolytes like sodium, potassium and chloride to function properly. The ability of sodium to move in and out of the individual cells help to transmit nerve impulses, which further makes it possible for the brain muscles and nervous system to communicate with each other.
Fights against depression
Sea salt helps in the regulation of hormones in the body, which are serotonin and melatonin and thus, it is believed that it can also help to treat depression. These hormones basically make you feel more relaxed and contribute to a peaceful sleep. Considering the scientific evidences, there are none to prove if sea salt actually helps to produce or regulate these hormones.
Prevents dehydration
Sodium helps to retain the water in our body and a shortage of it can thus make your body lose water. Sea salt, being a rich source of sodium helps to maintain the sodium-potassium balance in the body, thus also ensuring proper fluid balance in the body.
Healthy skin
As per a study conducted by the University of Kiel(Germany), bathing with dead sea salt solution helps in enhancing moisturization, reduces roughness and also treats inflammation. This is mainly due to the high magnesium content in the sea salt which also helps in cleansing the skin, reduces dark circles and also treats acne. You can simply apply it topically on your skin to notice the effects.
Great exfoliator
There are number of benefits of sea salt, some of which are, removing the dead skin cells, improving the blood circulation, promoting skin rejuvenation and therefore, keeping your skin soft, clean and smooth. All you have to do is gently rub your skin with sea salt to notice the benefits. It is basically the granular texture of sea salt that makes it suitable to be used as an exfoliant.
Reduces risk of osteoarthritis
There can be nothing more painful than osteoarthritis in the knees. But the good news is that, balneotherapy with dead sea salt can significantly ease its symptoms and this has been found and proven by a study.
Treats rhinosinusitis
This is a condition in which the nasal passages get filled up with mucus and get inflamed. It is commonly called as sinusitis. However, dead sea salt solution has proven to be effective in improving the sinusitis symptoms, as stated by a study conducted in Chicago (USA). Not only this, but it has also been linked with an improved quality of life.
Promotes good dental health
Sea salt consists of fluoride, which is one of the leading minerals that help in promoting dental health. It helps to prevent the acidic damage as well as demineralization of enamel. In addition to this, it also leads to the development of dental caries and cavities.
Rheumatoid arthritis
The anti-inflammatory properties of sea salt help to ease the pain caused by rheumatoid arthritis. The effects of dead sea salt and regular salt were compared, on patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis and patients that received sea salt bath felt a subsequent relief in walking, hand grip, joint pains and stiffness. Whereas, the same results were not noticed by the other group of patients.
Regulates blood sugar levels
You will notice the regulation in your blood sugar levels once you replace the regular salt with sea salt. This is extremely beneficial for the diabetic patients as this will reduce their dependency on the insulin medications.
Healing properties
Not many of you many know of this, but sea salt possesses great healing properties. A bath in sea salt water helps to open up the pores and improves the blood circulation in the body. Moreover, it hydrates the tissues and also, reduces the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines thus, keeping your skin moisturized.
Conclusion
There are not really any side effects caused by sea salt. However, you should limit its intake if you have been recommended by your doctor or if you suffer from high blood pressure. Apart from this, there is no harm in adding a sprinkle of it to every dish so as to enjoy its benefits.
References
https://community.aafa.org/blog/aafa-explains-is-therapy-safe-and-effective-for-asthma
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1161315/A-taste-salt-feeling-chipper.html
