Welcome to BrainStuff, a production of I-Heart Radio.

Hey Brain Stuff, Lauren Volkobom here with another classic episode from our archives.

As we're in the midst of the fall season

here in the United States, many people are starting to think about holiday feasts

perhaps including a brined turkey or a ham cured with salt. Aside from being tasty, these preparations help preserve meat.

Here's why.

Hey Brainsaff Lauren Vogelbaum here.

Let's talk salt. You might toss a little over your left shoulder for good luck,

sprinkle some on your eggs, or even tip a shaker into a frothy beer. However you use it, one thing's

for certain, most of us take salt for granted.

Salt wasn't always such a simple matter.

For centuries, it was a rare commodity used as payment,

as an impetus for wars and often for survival.

Salt preserved fish in ancient Egypt, seasoned Roman salad

dressings, and even came to stand for a measure of a person's integrity. A competent

Roman soldier was worth his salt, had earned his allowance of the valuable seasoning.

But more than being tasty, salt kept entire civilizations alive thanks to its ability to prevent foods

from turning into bacteria- Latin killers.

To understand how salt prevents foods from spoiling, it's important to first grasp how it's

used to preserve foods.

Salt is used in two primary ways, either in granule form or in brine form, a brine being a water and salt solution.

A ham, for example, might be cured with salt and cucumbers are preserved and turned into

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