salt as a medicine

Man's innate appetite for salt may be related to his evolution from predominantly ....vegeterian anthropoids , and it is noteworthy that those people who live mainly on protein and milk or who drink salty water do not generally salt their food ,whereas those who live mainly on vegetables,rice and cereals use much more salt.medicinal use tended to emphasize the positive aspects of salt, e.g. prevention of putrefaction ,reduction of tissue swelling,treatment of diarrhea.Evidence was also available to ancient people of its relationship to ferfertility,particularly in domestic animals.the history of salt thus represents a unique example for studing the impact of a widely used dietary substance on different important aspects of man's life,including medical philosophy.