this post was submitted on 26 Nov 2023
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Nitrate contamination map of New Zealand launched by Greenpeace (www.rnz.co.nz)
submitted 11 months ago by Dave@lemmy.nz to c/newzealand@lemmy.nz
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Here's the actual map: https://maps.greenpeace.org/maps/aotearoa/know-your-nitrate/

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[–] ryannathans@aussie.zone 2 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (3 children)

I thought nitrates were fine (vegetables are full of them) unless mixed with meat whero they form nitrosamines?

[–] liv@lemmy.nz 3 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

Basically in recent years a bunch of epidemiological studies have found the level at which it affects us is lower than previously thought.

This paper from the Australian and NZ jnl of Public Health is pretty good I think: Nitrate in drinking water and cancer risk: the biological mechanism, epidemiological evidence and future research

[–] ryannathans@aussie.zone 3 points 11 months ago

Espejo-Herrera (2016) found when diets were high in vitamin C there was no statistically significant increase in risk of colon cancer from elevated nitrate levels in water

As I mentioned before, the cancer link must be related to poor diets lacking in antioxidants

[–] Dave@lemmy.nz 2 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Maybe, but in terms of drinking water in a predominantly omnivore country, does this distinction matter? We have one of the highest bowel/colon/rectum cancer rates in the world, which is linked to nitrates in drinking water.

[–] ryannathans@aussie.zone 1 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (2 children)

They form from curing meat in super high levels for a long time. If the implication is that we can't consume nitrates with meat, we should probably be avoiding combining vegetables and meat in the same meal.

Perhaps this just reflects low inhake of vitamin c - which prevents nitrosamines from forming

[–] ryannathans@aussie.zone 2 points 11 months ago

Confirmed in above paper:

Espejo-Herrera (2016) found when diets were high in vitamin C there was no statistically significant increase in risk of colon cancer from elevated nitrate levels in water

[–] Dave@lemmy.nz 1 points 11 months ago

Processed meat is one of very few foods on the WHOs list of things that almost definitely cause cancer.

Interesting that vitamin C protects against nitrates. Does that mean we should eat our (high in vitamin C) vegetables with meat?

[–] cloventt@lemmy.nz 1 points 11 months ago

Nitrates in drinking water are linked to cancer and birth defects. In high-enough concentrations it can trigger blue-baby syndrome, which can straight-up kill babies.