Nitrates, nitrites and nitrosamines are a group of carcinogens belonging to certain nitrogen compounds. The most common example of these compounds is nitrate, which is added in small amounts to sausage, ham, cheese products, as well as to many types of smoked meats and fish.
What is the danger of this supplement?
Nitrate is nitrosamine obtained by the decomposition of nitrate by chemical reactions. Due to the danger this chemical compound poses, saltpeter has been replaced worldwide with nitrates containing ascorbic acid.
Contrary to popular belief, nitrates themselves are not dangerous. But during the transition to nitrites and nitrosamines, this substance poses a serious threat to humans. Common in Japan, stomach cancer is provoked not only by the asbestos used in rice cleaning, but also by the habit of eating large quantities of smoked fish containing large amounts of nitrosamines.
What to do to reduce the harm of nitrosamines?
The danger of nitrosamines is exacerbated by substances such as aflatoxins and other mycotoxins. Mycotoxins are toxic metabolic products of some varieties of fungi. Their effect is especially strong on the body, in which there is a lack of vitamins C and E, which are blockers of these compounds. In other words, nitrosamines are poison, the antioxidants of which are neutralizers, i.e. vitamins C and E.
If you can’t completely refuse smoked products, then use more fruits and vegetables, such as salads with cabbage, green onions, tomatoes, green and red bell peppers, beets, horseradish and herbs. Diversify your diet with oranges, lemons and other citrus fruits, strawberries, black currants and other plant products enriched with antioxidants. It is worth supplementing your diet with products containing retinol (vitamin A) and tocopherol (vitamin E).
When do nitrates go into nitrites and nitrosamines?
As already mentioned, nitrates are not dangerous. If you drink enough water, they will be eliminated from the body by themselves. Nitrosamines are the products of the chemical decomposition of nitrates, which are dangerous for our body. A negative chemical reaction in the body occurs when a person has a decreased acidity or gastritis of the stomach and intestines. Elderly people and infants are most susceptible to this phenomenon. The first feeding of the child should be grown on soil where there is no fertilizer. Another factor in the formation of nitrites and nitrosamines is the lack of proper hygiene, so make sure your child respects it. Eat only fresh juices or store them in the freezer so that your food does not become a home for the growth of bacteria. In the first three months of a child’s life, you need to carefully monitor that there are no nitrites and nitrosamines in his food.
Where else can nitrites and nitrosamines form? Determination of nitrosamines
Nitrogen fertilizers, which can be found in large quantities in the soil, can cause the formation of nitrites and nitrosamines in vegetables, fruits, and cereals grown on it. The amount of nitrates that products can accumulate in themselves depends on their age and variety. The content of nitrosamines in young plants is many times greater than in mature ones.
In early spring and autumn, when the water level in the rivers becomes higher, and the fields are fertilized with nitrogen fertilizers in large quantities, nitrates and nitrites fall into wells and ponds. Any milk, regardless of the quantity and quality of disinfection measures taken, always contains microorganisms, which, when water is added or milk is diluted directly by the consumer, are easily converted to nitrates and nitrites, which gradually turn into nitrosamines.
What is the harmful effect of nitrosamines on the body
From all sides we are told about the negative effect of nitrates on the body, but what exactly is it?
In composition, nitrates are similar to dyes in the blood (heme), which is why they are easily converted to methemoglobin. It is only externally a campaign for hemoglobin, but does not possess its main property - to transport oxygen through the blood through the body and its organs. A kind of hemoglobin is replaced by methemoglobin, if the amount of the latter exceeds the norm, the body experiences oxygen starvation.
The most terrible thing is that the excess of methemoglobin will not be indicated to you by tests on which its absence will not be shown, but by a brown-blue skin tone near the lips, gradually spreading throughout the body. If the amount of methemoglobin is very large, then signs of poisoning appear - nausea, vomiting, rapid breathing, sometimes anemia can develop. Antioxidants and vitamin A can help treat and prevent it.