# What's the deal with non-iodized salt? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 4, 2011, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207 "2011-04-04T23:02:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![67java89](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/aeb1de/32.png) [@67java89](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/67java89)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/1 "2011-04-04T23:02:25Z")
When you buy salt, the non-iodized kind has a label which reads “Does not contain iodine, a necessary nutrient.” Since iodine is a necessary nutrient, what reason would the salt companies have for making non-iodized, and who buys it? ---
**Author:** ![loshan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce73a5/32.png) [@loshan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/loshan)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/2 "2011-04-04T23:08:59Z")
I buy non-iodized because I had a bad case of adult acne a few years ago and extra iodine aggravates the condition. ---
**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/3 "2011-04-04T23:09:18Z")
Because some people want to be free from the Man. The are tired of being told what is necessary, and what is not. They know that the right to be free is meaningless unless you exercise it all the time. Take that, Man! Tris ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/4 "2011-04-04T23:09:45Z")
Iodine can cause thyroid problems in some people [http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/35.html](http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/35.html) ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/5 "2011-04-04T23:09:57Z")
A lot of people find that iodized salt has a slightly bitter taste, so they don’t like to cook with it. ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/6 "2011-04-04T23:23:37Z")
> [@67java89](#): > > When you buy salt, the non-iodized kind has a label which reads “Does not contain iodine, a necessary nutrient.” Since iodine is a necessary nutrient, what reason would the salt companies have for making non-iodized, and who buys it? Iodine can change the colour or taste of some foods, for example when used for pickling. It’s not that they’re making non-iodized salt. They’re making salt. Some salt has iodine and other stuff added for health reasons. ---
**Author:** ![Dickerman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@Dickerman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dickerman)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/7 "2011-04-05T00:15:18Z")
Some folks are allergic to iodine. ---
**Author:** ![StuffLikeThatThere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc8723/32.png) [@StuffLikeThatThere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StuffLikeThatThere)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/8 "2011-04-05T01:30:33Z")
Some unlucky folks have to go on extremely low iodine diets for periods of time, to have followup treatments for thyroid cancer. Those folks are very, very grateful for noniodized salt on the shelves. If you can only eat a very few things, it’s really nice if you can have a little salt with them. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/9 "2011-04-05T01:36:25Z")
Unless you avoid restaurants and processed foods, it’s a good bet you’re getting enough iodine without having it in your table or cooking salt at home, too. ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/10 "2011-04-05T02:05:36Z")
On a timely note, observant Jews use non-iodized salt for Passover, since the iodized variety includes dextrose to prevent the iodine from degrading, and dextrose is derived from corn or wheat starch, neither of which can be used during Passover. A niche application, to be sure, but not mentioned yet. ---
**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/11 "2011-04-05T04:11:51Z")
> [@gonzoron](#): > > On a timely note, observant Jews use non-iodized salt for Passover, since the iodized variety includes dextrose to prevent the iodine from degrading, and dextrose is derived from corn or wheat starch, neither of which can be used during Passover. > > A niche application, to be sure, but not mentioned yet. Not so niche, Kosher salt is preferred by chefs for its neutral flavor and ease of handling. ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/12 "2011-04-05T08:36:18Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > Iodine can cause thyroid problems in some people > > [http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/35.html](http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/35.html) It’s usually the other way round. Lack of iodine can cause thyroid problems. That’s why it is added to salt in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 10:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/13 "2011-04-05T10:06:40Z")
> [@Floater](#): > > It’s usually the other way round. Lack of iodine can cause thyroid problems. That’s why it is added to salt in the first place. Right: Lack of iodine causes goiters and mental retardation. It was a huge problem in the Great Lakes region and the Pacific Northwest before we figured out what caused it and began to iodize salt. It’s an important public health initiative, like fluoridating water and vaccination programs. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear it’s been opposed by morons. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/14 "2011-04-05T11:31:11Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > Not so niche, Kosher salt is preferred by chefs for its neutral flavor and ease of handling. “Kosher” salt and non-iodized ‘OK for Passover’ salt aren’t necessarily the same thing. “Kosher” (really, “koshering”) salt has very large crystals and can be used during the process of making meat kosher. Non-iodized salt that doesn’t have dextrose in it can be the very fine-grained “table” variety. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/15 "2011-04-05T11:48:51Z")
One of life’s cheap luxuries is Maldon Sea Salt. It’s only a few bucks a box and is a completely different experience to ordinary iodized table salt. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/16 "2011-04-05T13:13:30Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > Right: Lack of iodine causes goiters and mental retardation. It was a huge problem in the Great Lakes region and the Pacific Northwest before we figured out what caused it and began to iodize salt. It’s an important public health initiative, like fluoridating water and vaccination programs. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear it’s been opposed by morons. That doesn’t mean that although 99% of inland population need iodine, and adding it to salt is easier than getting them to eat seafish, that for 1% of the population, they get their iodine elsewhere fine and the iodine in salt would be too much and cause indeed problems. For every medical “hypo-” problem there’s also at least one person with the exact opposite “hyper-” problem. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/17 "2011-04-05T13:22:17Z")
You don’t need iodine to make a saline solution for medical purposes. ---
**Author:** ![h.sapiens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e0b2c6/32.png) [@h.sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/h.sapiens)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/18 "2011-04-05T13:36:16Z")
> [@StuffLikeThatThere](#): > > Some unlucky folks have to go on extremely low iodine diets for periods of time, to have followup treatments for thyroid cancer. Those folks are very, very grateful for noniodized salt on the shelves. If you can only eat a very few things, it’s really nice if you can have a little salt with them. I had to go on a very-low iodine diet in preparation for radioactive iodine treatment for thyroid cancer. Not only did I have to cook most of my own food using non-iodized salt, I had to cut out all dairy, eggs, and seafood, and anything with artificial red, orange or brown coloring (not all red food dye contains iodine, but some does, so you have to avoid it just in case). Not fun. ---
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/19 "2011-04-05T14:19:30Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > It’s an important public health initiative, like fluoridating water and vaccination programs. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear it’s been opposed by morons. Are you suggesting that Europeans are morons? In Europe, fluoridated tap water is rare and the vast majority of countries in the EU don’t have compulsary salt iodization. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207/20 "2011-04-05T14:31:42Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > A lot of people find that iodized salt has a slightly bitter taste, so they don’t like to cook with it. I would challenge anybody to tell the difference between a dish made with iodized vs non-iodized salt. A person may be able to detect the difference if tasted right out of the container, but after cooking? I won’t say ‘never’, but. . .never. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-non-iodized-salt/577207.md?page=2)