Sodium Nitrate

Many foods, especially cured meats such as bacon and hot dogs, use nitrates to preserve color and maintain microbial safety. Nitrate is harmless, but it can convert to nitrite, which can form nitrosamines , a powerful cancer-causing chemical in your body. Also, large commercial farms use fertilizers on their crops creating another unfortunate source of nitrates-- non-organic vegetables and fruits. The over fertilization results in nitrate run-off polluting rivers and streams and therefore our water supply. So please, choose organic produce, nitrate-free preserved meats and take vitamin C everyday (vitamin C is known to inhibit the conversion to nitrosamines in your stomach).