Salt Tidbits & Trivia

We have all sorts of animal studies trying to discover mechanisms of human physical and psychological function. Rat studies, dog studies. But...worm studies?

Researchers at the University of Oregon have discovered that woms perform a calculus based on their sensing of salt to determine whether to proceed straight ahead (high salt) or stop and consider other options. If this were the Calaveras County (CA) jumping frog race, we'd put our money on the high-salt roundworm.

Read about it in the July 3 edition of Nature as reported in advance by Physorg.com from which was gleaned this explanatory graphic. A spike in salt concentration in ASEL (left neuron) activates expression that leads a worm to proceed in a straight line. A dip in salt levels in ASER (right neuron) turns on a negative reaction that tells a worm to change to a turning movement to look around.

Graphic courtesy of Shawn Lockery.

Posted by Dick Hanneman at 06:23 PM | Permalink

Amongst the nation's employers, the salt industry is deceptively diminutive; each week far more jobs are created (and lost) than the total workforce of our industry which supplies the feedstock for the nation's chlor-alkali industry, keeps our winter highways safe and passable, ensures our good health and the myriad other consumer conveniences we enjoy. A hint of our vast and enduring significance, however, is found in the local recognition we enjoy.

This week, for example, Grand Saline, TX, celebrates its "salty heritage" in its 34th Annual Salt Festival. As the local Salt Festival Heritage Foundation reminds:

For decades, production of salt from the one of the largest salt deposits in the nation has been the lifeblood of this town that even bears the product’s name.

The mining operations by Morton Salt Co. reach a depth of 700 feet and extend over a 60-acre area. According to a Van Zandt County historical marker, the salt found here could supply the world’s salt needs for the next 20,000 years.

In downtown sits the Salt Palace Museum, made of pure rock salt. According to the foundation it was first built in 1936 and then rebuilt in 1975 when the Salt Festival was initiated and replaced again in 1993.

The museum displays information on the history of Grand Saline and salt mining memorabilia and shows a film on mining operations.

In downtown sits the Salt Palace Museum, made of pure rock salt. According to the foundation it was first built in 1936 and then rebuilt in 1975 when the Salt Festival was initiated and replaced again in 1993.

The museum displays information on the history of Grand Saline and salt mining memorabilia and shows a film on mining operations.

Congratulations to all involved in this celebration of the significance of the salt industry.

Posted by Dick Hanneman at 04:05 AM | Permalink

For all those who fear the impact of salt on growing crops here is interesting news. Researchers report that growing cherry tomatoes in salty water can make them tastier and richer in antioxidants. Seawater irrigation puts an environmental stress on the the tomato plants that causes them to produce more vitamin C, vitamin E, and dihydrolipoic and chlorogenic acids.in an attempt to cope with the stressful conditions.

It also improves the flavor of the tomatoes.

Riccardo Izzo, a professor of agriculture at the University of Pisaone describes the findings.

Posted by Mort Satin at 04:28 PM | Permalink

There's a new public recognition of the link of salt and health, a "saline solution." As described in our blog back in January, salt-lined "caves" are the latest "in thing" in this week's Time Magazine's Living section. Reporter Jennine Lee-St. John seems to be on a mission to convince Time's readers that the halotherapy in Chicago's Galos Caves replicates the longstanding success of treating Eastern Europeans suffering respiratory ailments with recuperative sessions in salt mines. But it's stress relief that attracts US Midwesterners, not relief from air pollution. Lee-St. John describes the attraction as a "quest for holistic relaxation."

Posted by Dick Hanneman at 12:18 AM | Permalink

Among the early industries that created the community of St. Clair, MI, only the salt industry remains. Now owned by Cargill Salt, the facility is best known for its unique role in producing Alberger salt, invented at the site in 1886. A 1998 photo from the St. Clair Times Herald shows the Alberger pan.

Posted by Dick Hanneman at 12:28 PM | Permalink

Before 1991, very little cholera was reported in Peru. Then, under unusual circumstances, it infected Peru’s coastal waters and the fish which are so important to the local diet. The organism responsible for cholera, Vibrio cholerae occurs naturally in the plankton of fresh, brackish, and salt water, attached primarily to copepods in the zooplankton. The coastal waters were unusually warm and untreated sewage supported unusually large zooplankton blooms.

In order to quell the bad publicity regarding the quality of his country’s coastal waters, then President Fujimori wished to demonstrate to his citizens that the press reports were exaggerated. He boldly posed for public television cameras eating some locally-prepared ceviche. Within 12 hours, he came down with cholera confirming that pathogens are a biological, rather than a political phenomenon. That cholera outbreak eventually killed 3,500 people.

Fortunately, doctors quickly turned to effective and inexpensive oral rehydration therapy with clean water and salt. If not, the death toll would have been much greater.

Cholera is characterized by prolonged episodes of diarrhea and it is critical to ensure that lost fluids and salts are fully replaced. Common table salt (sodium chloride) is the key electrolyte that has to be replenished along with water.

Now some officials worry that climate change could bring the scourge back to Peru and are making doubly certain to make the population aware of the need to keep themselves fully hydrated and electrolyte-balanced, proving once again that salt is an essential element of life and good health.

Posted by Mort Satin at 01:03 PM | Permalink

Its setting is halfway around the world and the main characters are stay-at-home families, but otherwise the quest for social reform theme in the 21-minute award-winning Indian film (2007 Madurai Film Festival) The Lost Water sounds like a modern-day Grapes of Wrath.

The setting is in Gujarat, India which produces 73% of India's salt. The producers, social reformers all, aim at exposing the plight of salt workers in Gujarat's Little Rann of Kutch (LRK) area. The promo explains:

The government of Gujarat has consistently ignored the LRK area. The salt workers of LRK, known as Agariyas, are predominantly from the Koli and Chuvaliya Koli tribes. As bonded laborers, they are not only victims of wage discrimination, they are endure serious physical and mental health hazards due to the dangerous nature of their work. Kharaghoda village itself is home to 437 widows. Working in extreme temperatures without any protective gear, many Agariyas suffer major health complications, including blindness and skin damage due to unprotected exposure to salt. Living in abject poverty, Agariyas now face water scarcity as well as malnutrition since green vegetables are not available in this area.

The LRK area has recently been designated as a wildlife sanctuary for the threatened Indian Wild Donkey, making salt workers and salt production in LRK now illegal. Agariyas have been forced by government authorities to look outside the LRK for work, now struggling for both their ancestors' land and their livelihood.

Posted by Dick Hanneman at 07:53 PM | Permalink