Friday, August 8, 2008

NITRATES! Booga booga!

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(I really just wanted an excuse to post this rad picture.)

Don't you love it when you find out that something you thought was unhealthy is actually not nearly that bad for you after all? Sandy Szwarc at the blog Junkfood Science has a super-long and detailed post debunking the myth that the nitrates and nitrites found in most processed meats are the cause for alarm they've been made out to be. Especially since there are tons more nitrates in leafy green vegetables than in meats, anyway, and even our own bodies produce far more nitrates than we would ever be able to consume from eating cured meats.

The article is long, but totally interesting, and I recommend it to anyone who has ever wasted precious time picking up every package of bacon in the supermarket to check the ingredient list for nitrates or wasted precious money buying a more pricey (and sometimes less tasty!) brand just because it said "nitrate-free". Low-carbers have it hard enough without facing limits when it comes to meat, so I propose we drop nitrates from the list of things to worry about.

Bring on the hot dogs, bacon, pepperoni, salami, sausage, and beef jerky! Whee!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

You really have to get this thing famous so I can stop being the only one to enjoy amazing hotdog photos and sentences like "low-carbers have it hard enough without facing limits when it comes to meat, so I propose we drop nitrates from the list of things to worry about".

A+ post!

Tracey said...

Thanks, dumplin'! The thing is, I don't know if there's anyone out there who could possibly enjoy hotdog photos like we can.

Jennifer [To PIN/share a Post, Click the 3 dots or the Red SAVE Button] said...

I agree with you - this is great news! So much so, I added a link to you and this post and the original. As well, I added you to my blog roll.

Tracey said...

Thanks, Jennifer! I'm a subscriber to your blog, so I'm honored that you found me and linked to me.

This little blog is so new, I haven't gotten around to putting up a blogroll yet, but I will definitely include you when I do.

Jennifer [To PIN/share a Post, Click the 3 dots or the Red SAVE Button] said...

Tracey, you write well. I have quite a number of young people that visit my blog. They don't all comment, but enough have, that I realize many young people are interested in low-carbing and interested to hear what us old timers in the business have to say. I think it is wonderful personally. I adore young people and for some reason they like me too. My two young sons in their twenties are amazing young people, smarter than me, and I have the greatest respect for them and others like them.

I want to link to some blogs that belong to young people to cater to this group.

I see wonderful potential in your blog and your abilities to reach people positively on this WOL. I will be keeping a curious eye on its progress and. thanks, I would appreciate a link. :-)

Tracey said...

Thanks, Jennifer. You know, I've never really thought about low-carb from a younger/older perspective, but it makes sense, I suppose. I know quite a few people in their twenties who have had success with Atkins. I know that most people my age were aware of the low-carb "craze" of the nineties, but we were generally too young and carefree to worry about what we were eating. Now that we're in our mid-twenties and are finding our metabolisms hitting a brick wall, it suddenly seems a lot more important to find a healthier way to live. I also think that the low-fat, lo-cal trend is slowly but surely on its way out as people figure out that it was generally a massive failure.

Carbzilla said...

I LOVE your blog and have been reading through your old posts (thus the numerous comments). However, on this one I have to say Whoa Nelly! I'm actually allergic to Nitrates and preservatives like BHA and BHP. I think the difference is the processing. The veggies haven't been processed while the meat has. For me it's hit or miss, but I've never gotten a veggie migraine. However, I'd be happy to hand over my hot dog headache to anyone who wants it.

Tracey said...

Thanks so much, Carbzilla!

Sorry to hear about your headaches, but I guess it's good you know what causes them!

It's interesting how different everyone is in terms of their reactions to food. Hot dogs and other processed meats have never given me any problem whatsoever in terms of how I feel. As long as I cut the starch and sugar, I feel like a million bucks.

However, I was sort of in a different place with eating when I wrote this post. Even though I still eat processed stuff, I'm much more aware of the natural-ness of my food and try to make better choices as often as possible. I don't want to get so scared of food that I end up feeling like I have no choices and fall off the wagon, but when presented the choice between nitrate-filled or nitrate-free meats, I always err on the safe side and go with the free.