Humans go to extremes to collect salt. We dig it up from underground deposits or wait patiently for pools of seawater to evaporate and leave it behind, just so we can stir, sprinkle and scoop the mineral into our food.
Our desire likely stems somewhat from biological need. “We have this hardwired, hedonic response to these concentrations of sodium that are physiologically relevant to us from an evolutionary perspective,” says Russell Keast, a food scientist at Deakin University in Australia. Sodium, which constitutes half of each table salt molecule, keeps our nerves and muscle fibers functioning properly. Early humans came across the compound relatively rarely, which could explain why we like the taste so much, Keast says. Enjoying the biting taste would have ensured our early ancestors ate enough of the stuff when they found it.
