Have you ever looked at the ingredients of your store bought salt container? Why should you, It's just salt right? Wrong!
Many salts have added ingredients including, but not limited to: Sugar, Dextrose, Potassium iodide, Sodium bicarbonate, Yellow prussiate of soda, and Calcium silicate. So, what are these additives, why are they added, and are they unhealthy?
What Are the Additives in Salt and What are Their Specific Purposes?
Potassium Iodide: Contains iodine, iodine is an essential nutrient your thyroid needs to make the hormones that drive metabolism, growth, and brain development. When you don’t get enough, the thyroid enlarges into a goiter, and can cause many health problems.
Countries began iodizing salt in the 1920s. It was a simple idea: everyone eats salt, it’s inexpensive, and only a trace of iodine is required. The challenge was making sure that tiny dose actually survived processing, shipping, and storage long enough to reach the consumer, which is where dextrose and sodium bicarbonate comes into play.
Dextrose (Sugar): a simple sugar mainly found iodized salt, it's added to preserve the potassium iodide, to keep it from breaking down before it reaches your body.
Sodium Bicarbonate (Baking Soda):
It keeps the salt from clumping and helps stop the iodine from breaking down.
By making the salt mixture slightly more alkaline, it creates a steadier environment so everything stays dry, stable, and free‑flowing.
Yellow Prussiate of Soda (Sodium Ferrocyanide): Used as an anti-caking agent to keep salt free flowing.
Calcium Silicate: Aslo an anti-caking agent that helps to absorb moisture and maintain the flowability of salt.
Are These Additives Bad for You?
In small amounts these additives are generally considered safe.
Dextrose in salt is not generally considered bad for you because the amount of dextrose added to salt is so insignificant it has no real effect.
Potassium Iodide is actually considerd good for you when added in regular table salt.
The science today supports keeping anti‑caking agents classified as GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe, a regulatory designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)), meaning they’re considered safe when used within the established limits.
Conclusion:
Science currently shows these additives are safe to use in salt when guidelines are followed, but science is always evolving and recommendations can change as new evidence emerges.
Sources and More Info:
- BiologyInsights: Why Is There Dextrose in Salt? It’s About Iodine
- National Library of Medicine: Comparison of Salt Iodization Requirements in National Standards with Global Guidelines
- Food Additives: What is Sodium Ferrocyanide (E535) in Salt and Is Cyanide in it Bad for you?
- Michigan State University: Anti-Caking Agents
- OC Health Care Agency: Potassium Iodide (KI) Fact Sheet
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