Seaweed granules can be an alternative to salt: Scientists

Want to cut back on salt? Try seaweed granules in your recipes instead, scientists say.

Want to cut back on salt? Try seaweed granules in your recipes instead, scientists say.

Researchers at Sheffield Hallam University in the UK found that the granules deliver a strong flavour but are low in salt, which is blamed for thousands of early deaths every year.

By replacing salt with it in bread and processed foods may help prevent high blood pressure, strokes and deaths, they claimed.

The benefit of seaweed as a salt substitute is just one aspect of its potential, said the researchers.

It contains a vast array of vital micronutrients that make a person feel full, meaning it can be useful in reducing obesity levels, the Daily Mail reported.

The researchers, who carried out the study under the UK Food Innovation Project, found the sodium level in granules is just 3.5 % compared with the 40 % in salt used by the food industry.

And consumers find it almost impossible to tell when seaweed granules replaced salt in baked goods, they found.

The scientists also found the granules can destroy or inhibit the growth of food poisoning bugs in meat products.

Seaweed, which has long featured in the diets of families in China and Japan, could theoretically provide a valuable new food source for a world struggling to feed rising populations, the researchers said.

Dr Craig Rose, of the Seaweed Health Foundation, said: "It has a very good and defined taste, which can be a great benefit for various foods."