Salt. Ordinary table salt (sodium chloride) being poured from a salt-cellar. Salt is widely used for preserving, curing and flavouring foods. The sodium in salt is required by the body (along with potassium) to aid the transmission of electric signals and it occurs in many bodily fluids. Sodium is an essential mineral in the body. However, a high salt intake has been linked with the development of high blood pressure (hypertension), although the exact mechanism is not known. The pile of salt shown here weighs about 40 grammes; a typical person's daily intake of salt is about 5-20 grammes.