A report brought out by a lab in the US recently said that most premium iodised salt brands manufactured and consumed in India "contain alarming levels of potassium ferrocyanide". Now, potassium ferrocyanide is a carcinogenic component. The report, published in some media publications, has caused anxiety in many.

An activist has since claimed that "industrial waste, together with hazardous chemicals like iodine and cyanide, has been used in salt in India".

But what is the truth? As per a physicist, who tweets from @GorwayGlobal, Potassium ferrocyanide is a well-known food additive which "is used as an anti-caking agent in cooking salt. It is NOT cyanide - this would be lethal in milligram quantities - and it does NOT breakdown in the body into cyanide."

A prominent brand has clarified that its salt is totally safe.