# Salt substitute

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salt-substitute/537332>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [April 25, 2010, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salt-substitute/537332 "2010-04-25T20:42:11Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Annalist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dbc845/32.png) [@Annalist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annalist)\
**Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salt-substitute/537332/1 "2010-04-25T20:42:11Z")

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I am glad I read your article on, “No salt,” I was about to make an on-line purchase, Whew! Is there any such thing as a “safe” salt substitute?

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**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\
**Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salt-substitute/537332/2 "2010-04-25T21:16:36Z")

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What article where. And what is your question?

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**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\
**Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salt-substitute/537332/3 "2010-04-25T21:22:03Z")

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Sounds like this Cecil column:

[Can salt substitute kill you?](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1364/can-salt-substitute-kill-you)

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**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\
**Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salt-substitute/537332/4 "2010-04-25T21:30:48Z")

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> [@Fear\_Itself](#):
>
> Sounds like this Cecil column:
> 
> [Can salt substitute kill you?](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1364/can-salt-substitute-kill-you)

Thanks, **Fear Itself**. Flipping this one over from GQ to Comments on Cecil’s Columns.

**samclem** , Moderator, GQ

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**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\
**Post date:** [April 26, 2010, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salt-substitute/537332/5 "2010-04-26T16:06:42Z")

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To answer the OP, how about salt itself? For the significant majority of people, it has no health risks at all (at least, not before the point where the food would be inedible from being oversalted).

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**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\
**Post date:** [April 26, 2010, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salt-substitute/537332/6 "2010-04-26T16:29:40Z")

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I dunno - they’re talking about 11 teaspoons there. Wouldn’t that amount of sodium chloride be enough to cause dangerous dehydration,a nd possibly death in a person with heart or kidney disease?