This year, we had an unusually warm start to winter, with temperatures reaching summer-like levels even in December. But lately, it has suddenly gotten much colder!
Winter has truly arrived.
Yesterday, I changed my bedding to its warmest setting and got completely ready for winter.
There’s nothing quite like a warm, cozy bed. ♡
During the cold season, warm soups, hot pots, and hot springs are simply wonderful.
When it’s winter, warm things just feel so good, don’t they?
When it comes to foods that help keep the body warm, ginger and green onions are good choices, too.
They may also help support the body during cold and flu season.
And actually, there is something we casually consume every day that may also help us stay warm.
Salt.
And not just any salt, but sun-dried sea salt, naturally produced using seawater and sunlight.
I regularly use salt from “Umi no Sei” (Japanese company which makes sun-dried sea salt).
To be honest, I thought it was expensive at first.
But when I compared sun-dried sea salt with refined salt, the difference was obvious.
Sun-dried sea salt has a smooth, mellow flavor without the sharpness of refined salt. It has a subtle umami taste and a wonderful depth.
The more I eat it every day, the more I notice the difference.
Even simple dishes taste delicious with just this salt, so I can really enjoy the natural flavors of the ingredients. It almost makes me feel like my cooking skills have improved!
Sun-dried sea salt naturally contains a variety of minerals from the sea.
And when the salt is produced naturally under the sun, something truly special seems to happen.
After switching to soy sauce and miso made with sun-dried sea salt as well, I was amazed at how delicious they tasted.
Rice with just a little salt, rice with soy sauce, or rice with miso can feel like a wonderful meal all by itself.
And, somewhat surprisingly, I also noticed that I didn’t seem to get as cold as easily.
Apparently, sun-dried sea salt, sometimes referred to as natural sea salt, may help support the body’s ability to stay warm.
The balance of trace minerals that are removed during the refining process may also play a role in supporting the body.
At this point, I sometimes think of it as the ultimate everyday “supplement.”
When I think about it that way, the price doesn’t seem expensive at all.
For just a few hundred yen, I can make my everyday meals more delicious while also feeling that my body is doing better.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say:
Changing the salt I eat changed how I feel.
When buying salt at a supermarket, I recommend checking the ingredients and production method.
For example, you may want to look for products whose ingredients are listed as “seawater” or “sun-dried sea salt,” with production methods such as “sun-dried,” “heated in a traditional salt pan,” or “high-temperature firing.”
On the other hand, if the production method mentions something like “ion-exchange membrane,” the salt is more likely to be refined salt.
If you’re thinking about reviewing your diet for the sake of your health, why not start with something as simple as salt?
Thank you so much for reading today!
I hope this article will be of some small help in supporting your health. 😊