Lunch Meat Gone Bad: Nitrates

There’s been a lot of BAD hype the last couple of years about “nitrates” in our food, specifically sodium nitrate. I’m not sure if it’s because there’s been an influx of pregnant friends in my life (lunch meat is a big no-no apparently!), or if it’s because of the massive recall of various Maple Leaf Foods processed meat products (due to listeria 2 years ago), or if I’m just paying more attention to what I’m eating. But sandwich meat and the like is being exposed for what it really is: bad bad stuff for you, your health and well-being.

Sodium nitrate is used to preserve and cure processed meats such as ham, sausage, salami, hot dogs, bacon, and some smoked and cured fish. It’s also used in meat as a means to prevent botulism and to give it that pink colour we find so appetizing and associate easily with “fresh” and “good for you” quality.

However sodium nitrate is nowhere near good for you and here’s why:

• first, these processed meats are usually high in salt and fat which endangers your cardiovascular system 
• the second health hazard is found with the “direct carcinogenic effect of nitrosamines, which are formed when nitrate interacts with amines (parts of proteins) in [your] digestive fluids or [your] foods eaten. Nitrosamines have been shown to be potent carcinogens in animals, producing increased amounts of cancer in the liver, lungs, and pancreas…” (Haas and Levin, 469) In other words, it causes various types of cancer 
• third, sodium nitrite is known to trigger migraine headaches, brain tumours and a form of lung disease, COPD (Common Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) 

So why are producers of these meats still allowed to use sodium nitrate in the food we consume? The very basic answer to this it that meat-processing is a billion dollar industry and manufacturers claim there is no good substitute for these nitrates and nitrites. And that's that...

But it doesn't mean this is out of your hands. The best possible thing you can do for yourself is choose to not eat these processed foods. If you’re looking for a healthier alternative your best bet would be organic chicken and tuna.

Life without bacon, can you do it? Let me know :)

Enjoy the journey... S

Haas, Elson M., MD and Buck Levin, PhD, RD. Staying Healthy With Nutrition – The Complete Guide to Diet and Nutritional Medicine. New York: Random House Inc., 2006.