DEAR DR. BLONZ: I’m 78, and for years I have been using canning salt for all my salt needs. My daughter now says it’s catching up with me. For the past three years, I’ve been suffering from weakness and a number of other problems. I hurt my back this year, and the discomfort has spread down to my hips. Is there a chance that the canning salt could be responsible? -- T.C., San Jose, California

DEAR T.C.: I encourage you to seek advice for the health issues you are now experiencing, but canning salt is not the villain your daughter believes it to be. It is no more harmful than regular salt. The difference is that canning salt does not contain sodium silico-aluminate, which is the anti-caking substance often added to table salt to keep it free-flowing. In addition, canning salt does not contain iodine.

One might ask why canning salt is on the market. The answer is that salt is often added to the water during the canning process, as it affects water’s boiling temperature and can reduce the time needed to safely can foods. However, the anti-caking agents in regular table salt were found to leave a powdery deposit on the jars. Canning salt arrived on the scene to solve this problem.

DEAR DR. BLONZ: What are your thoughts about ready-packaged lettuce, salads and cabbage slaws? Also, are there any concerns or benefits to eating baked potato peels? I wash and prick holes in the potatoes, then put them in a microwave-safe sandwich bag with a little water and cook them in the microwave. The resulting peel is soft and really good-tasting. -- V.G., West Orange, New Jersey

DEAR V.G.: Ready-packaged lettuces and slaw mixes undergo a thorough washing, are safe and, theoretically, ready to eat right out of the package. I do recommend, however, that all such packaged products be given a cold-water rinse to help crisp the greens before serving. Most national brands date-code their packages, so make sure you’re getting a fresh product. Aside from checking the date, look for browning or other discoloration as signs that the veggies are getting old.

The peel of the potato isn’t a nutritional powerhouse; the vitamins and minerals come primarily from the flesh. The peel does contain fiber and a small amount of iron, and provides a good contrast to the smooth texture of the flesh.

There’s absolutely nothing unsafe about eating potato peels, provided there is no greenish discoloration. I say this because potatoes can produce solanine, a bitter-tasting toxin that affects the nervous system. Solanine is produced when the potato is exposed to sunlight or allowed to sprout. It is most concentrated in the sprout, but it’s also present in potatoes having a greenish tint to the skin.

You can slow the production of solanine by storing your potatoes in a cool, dark place. Carefully cut away all sprouts and green portions before cooking, and be sure to discard any potatoes that taste bitter.

Send questions to: “On Nutrition,” Ed Blonz, c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO, 64106. Send email inquiries to questions@blonz.com. Due to the volume of mail, personal replies cannot be provided.

DEAR DR. BLONZ: My attempts to lose weight continue to disappoint. I cut back significantly on food and calories and the numbers begin to decrease, but soon, the weight loss suddenly shuts down -- leveling off with no more drops. All this with no cheating! When I give up, the weight comes back and sometimes goes above my starting level. I continue to try, but am wondering if there is something I am not considering. -- F.S., Hayward, California

DEAR F.S.: Unfortunately, there is the risk that some of those who are repeatedly unsuccessful with drastic weight-loss regimens may end up disappointed -- and in some cases, in worse shape than if they hadn’t tried in the first place. Some get to the point that they no longer want to try.

Being slightly overweight is not necessarily a bad thing if you have a healthful diet and active lifestyle. But if weight is more of a serious issue, remaining obese means squaring off with increased risks of high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and other issues.

Getting back to your question: Could there be a bug in your approach, or is this more an issue with the body’s software? What gives the body this apparent cruel streak?

Consider that we make a conscious choice to go on these weight-loss diets, but the basic metabolic processes in our bodies are not in the loop on that decision. To these systems, the body has entered a state of famine, and it shifts to the assumption that a scarcity of food is the new status quo.

As soon as a restrictive diet is begun, the body’s innate drive for survival gets activated. Similar to the way we would have to cut back on spending if we lost our jobs and had to survive on assistance, the body automatically shifts into its version of economy mode. Depending on the severity of the calorie cut, actions would start with a slowing of body metabolism and a lowering of body temperature, along with other cuts that leave you feeling drained of energy.

We maintain our normal lifestyle through this period by conscious deception. We know that it’s coming, why it’s here and how long it will last. Consistent with the purpose of the diet, we want to make the body call on its energy reserves, which we are attempting to pare down. But as your reserves begin to drain, the body has this perverse desire to leave an IOU. Similar to how we might have “learned a lesson” and focused more on savings if we were fortunate to gain that job back, once we are “off” that diet, the body becomes more attentive to the handling and putting away of its energy. If frequent dieting is the norm in your life, this would especially be the case. The net effect can be a body with a greater focus on efficiency and holding on to its caloric stores.

One possible remedy is to refrain from focusing solely on drastic dieting. It is best to look beyond what we eat. Changes in lifestyle, such as regular physical activity, could provide the energy drain to swing the balance. We could be talking about nothing more than brisk walks.

Why not discard the idea of a “diet” entirely? After consulting your health professional, decide upon a reasonable ideal weight, and set this as your goal. Come up with a combination of food and activity that a person similar to you would require to maintain that weight; then on Day 1, begin eating and acting as if you were that person. Such an approach would mean a longer path to your goal, but the payoff is that you would never have to make any changes once there. It might be a way of turning the system around in your favor.

Send questions to: “On Nutrition,” Ed Blonz, c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO, 64106. Send email inquiries to questions@blonz.com. Due to the volume of mail, personal replies cannot be provided.

DEAR DR. BLONZ: It is a bit frustrating that it takes researchers so long to come up with answers for the major diseases affecting us all. I was hoping for some thoughts, as members of my circle of friends are dealing with several health issues. Their doctors prescribe pill after pill, with little in the way of answers. -- W.F., San Francisco

DEAR W.F.: Why does “science” take so long to come up with its cures? The frustration you feel, not uncommon, gives birth to a tendency to believe the worst about the medical and pharmaceutical communities. We tune in when the subject is conspiracies with the rich and powerful at the reins. This approach is all too easy to embrace by those who suffer.

Is there a reasonable answer? Those who have been around for several decades understand that there’s much that can go wrong with the human body. There has been amazing progress along many fronts, even though sophisticated medical research has not been around for very long. For example, we have only begun to understand how our 25,000 or so genes work and interact, and what turns them on, off or tweaks them in the right direction. We are, in essence, a collection of complicated interactive chemical reactions and control mechanisms, with only a rudimentary understanding of how it all works together and how we can make adjustments to avoid, or treat, disease.

Research, while vibrant, can seem poky when there are specific answers we crave. It takes enormous amounts of money, and there is not enough coming from federal funding. Our government has a moral responsibility to fund such research, but nobody wants to pay higher taxes to make it happen. Much gets done in corporate laboratories, but those are profit-making institutions that have to answer to their stockholders.

It is not an ideal situation, but there is no logic in jumping from this situation to one in which you embrace remedies with no testing or scientific foundation. The peddlers of such remedies have nothing but a sales pitch preceded by a condemnation of the status quo.

Most physicians and scientists are noble in their motivations. At least, most start that way. It is wrong to think that someone with a handle on a cure would not follow through to find out whether it is valid. Scientists relish the chance to be on a team that would help end a dreaded disease.

For my part, I will remain vigilant in my readings. I’ve been in the science field for a while, and do my best to foster promising concepts. At the same time, I will take issue with situations in which health frustrations and tragedies degenerate to financial opportunities for the unscrupulous to push unproven remedies on desperate people.

Send questions to: “On Nutrition,” Ed Blonz, c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO, 64106. Send email inquiries to questions@blonz.com. Due to the volume of mail, personal replies cannot be provided.