The Pink Salt Issue: Is Sodium Nitrite Harmful
The quick answers:
—Sodium Nitrite (aka pink salt, which is sold under various names such as DQ Cure #1 and Prague Powder #1) is by regulation 93.75% sodium and 6.25% nitrite.
—Its fundamental property from a health standpoint is that it kills bacteria that cause botulism in smoked and ground meat.
—The great advantage of using sodium nitrite is flavor: it’s what makes bacon taste like bacon and not spare ribs, what makes ham taste like ham and not a pork roast, and corned beef like corned beef and not pot roast.
—You do need to handle it with care because it’s toxic if you ingest it directly. It’s colored pink to prevent accidental ingestion. Keep it out of kids’ reach. According to this link on Oxford University’s site, the exact toxicity is 71 milligrams per kilogram. I weigh nearly 100 kilograms. That means if I ate 7.1 grams, it could kill me (by binding the oxygen carried by my blood to the hemoglobin, making that oxygen unavailable to my cells). That’s about a teaspoon. If you’re a petite 110 pounds, 1/2 teaspoon would be toxic. This article on its toxicity suggest an even lower amount is harmful. Bottom line: Don’t be afraid of it, but keep it well identified, and use it only as a recipe calls for.
—In the amounts called for in curing meat, and in the amount we commonly eat, it is not harmful in any meaningful way. Indeed, used properly, it’s beneficial. It’s an anti-microbial agent (i.e. kills bad bacteria), and it creates great flavors and appealing color.
Many think of sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate to be harmful chemical additives and have heard that they can be carcinogenic in certain situations. Here is my position on these issues:
Nitrates and Nitrites are naturally occurring chemicals that our bodies rely on for a number of reasons. Green vegetables such as spinach and celery are loaded with them. Of all the nitrite in our bodies, as much as 93% of it comes from the nitrate in vegetables. Our bodies naturally convert nitrate into nitrite, which works as a powerful antibacterial agent, particularly in an acidic environment (such as in our stomachs).
In the 1970s, concerns arose that nitrites could be carcinogenic. Current studies conclude that large quantities (as in contaminated water) can do serious damage, but that the quantities added to food do not. Indeed, as one study put it, “Since 93% of ingested nitrite comes from normal metabolic sources, if nitrite caused cancers or was a reproductive toxicant, it would imply that humans have a major design flaw.”[1]
And The American Medical Association reports that as of 2004, “given the current FDA and USDA regulations on the use of nitrites, the risk of developing cancer as a result of consumption of nitrites-containing food is negligible.”
It’s my belief that companies advertising their products as “nitrite-free,” are either uninformed themselves or are pandering to America’s ignorance about what is healthy and what is harmful in our foods. In other words, the term “no nitrites added” is a marketing device, not an actual health benefit.
Use pink salt in the quantities recommended in the recipes and eat a balanced diet.
