The alarm highlighted the harmful effects on health linked to the consumption of foods containing nitrosamines: here’s what they are.
The term nitrosamines refers to chemical compounds which usually they form within certain foods during the preparation stages or transformation of these. Recently the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has launched an alarm relating to these molecules in order to warn buyers, reviving the debate around their dangers.
In a survey, EFSA found the presence of ten nitrosamines in foods that are bought and consumed daily by each of us. Going into the specifics, these molecules are able to produce themselves naturally even within our body. In fact, they are closely linked to nitrates and nitrites, which are not necessarily dangerous to our health.
These are compounds that are used for food preservation, as well as to give additional color and flavor to foods such as meat, so that they have a more inviting appearance. Our body absorbs them with a certain speed, converting a part into saliva thanks to the activity of the appropriate glands.
Nitrosamines, how they are formed and why they are so dangerous
Nitrates and nitrites, in such circumstances, are not harmful at all. Everything changes when they combine with other molecules, in particular amines, compounds present in foods such as meats, cured meats and cheeses (ie rich in proteins). When they combine with nitrates and nitrites, the risk is precisely the formation of the dreaded nitrosamines.
Unlike the molecules taken individually, nitrosamines are able to affect the health of the organism. They could form completely spontaneously – as stated above. Our stomach, in fact, is characterized by an intense acidity, which contributes to the transformation of nitrites into nitrous acid. This combines with the amines, resulting in nitrosamines.
However, these compounds could also develop during food preparation: cooking, especially at high temperatures, favors their formation. But why are nitrosamines so dangerous? The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) – an international body part of the World Health Organization – has included them in the list of carcinogenic compounds following a series of investigations.
The president of the Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain spoke about it, Dieter Schrenk. From the investigations carried out on some animals, a link emerged between the appearance of liver tumors and the consumption of foods containing nitrosamines. This was referred to as “the most critical health effect”.
What foods are they found in?
Schrenk clarified that, in the study, the scenario was created “worse” in order to proceed with a risk assessment capable of “ensure a high level of consumer protection”. As a result, the researchers conducted their investigation on the assumption that all nitrosamines were equally likely to cause cancer in humans as the most dangerous of all.
In any case, these are chemical compounds with properties that are certainly dangerous for our body. The aforementioned European Food Safety Authority, in its investigation, found the presence of both carcinogenic molecules (can increase the chances of developing cancer) how genotoxic (i.e. responsible for DNA deterioration).
What can we do to protect ourselves? First of all, information plays a central role. The alarm raised by‘EFSA, in this sense, has had great importance in bringing the issue back to the center of the health debate. Knowing which foods contain nitrosamines is the first step in being able to protect yourself.
First, they are found in the foods we have already talked about, such as meats, cured meats, milk, cheese and various dairy products. Processed fish, fermented foods, and cocoa can also have amounts of nitrosamines. The compounds are present in processed (and therefore not fresh) vegetables and cereals. The same goes for beer and other alcoholic beverages.
Not just food: products that contain nitrosamines
Returning to the words of President Schrenk, the expert advice is follow a rich and varied diet, so as to reduce the intake of nitrosamines in the body. The presence of these harmful chemical compounds
for health, however, it has not only been found in the foods we buy every day, but also in some medicines.
The discovery highlighted the need to review the authorizations granted in the past to several products. As explained in an article in the Pharmaceutical Journal (which took up what emerged from the research of the European Medicines Agency), there are at least 20 drugs containing traces of nitrosamines.
Following the publication of the news, the authorities have expressed their intention to begin strict control over potentially risky medicines. A few years ago, in 2019, ranitidine was withdrawn from US markets. The over-the-counter drug, usually prescribed to reduce acidity, was banned after it was found to contain nitrosamine.