Check any package of bacon, hotdogs, or cold cuts and chances are you'll find nitrites listed among the ingredients.
Although nitrites have caused cancer in laboratory animals and may well do the same in people they are among the oldest and most common food preservatives and serve a variety of functions.
Nitrites and their close relatives, nitrates are simple compounds made of oxygen and nitrogen attached to some other element such as sodium or potassium. Potassium nitrate, or saltpeter, as it was called, was first used in the middle ages.
Today, sodium nitrite is the most common food preservative.
Red Meat
Fresh meat in the supermarket is red because of the pigment called "myoglobin," which stores oxygen in muscle cells. But myoglobin is only red when it is bonded to oxygen molecules.
In live animals, the blood carries oxygen to the myoglobin; in freshly cut meat the oxygen comes directly from the air. But the red color of freshly cut meat is temporary since aging, cooking, and bacteria, all separate the oxygen from the myoglobin, turning the meat a brownish-gray color.
Nitrites keep meat red by bonding to the myoglobin and acting as a substitute for the oxygen. Oxygen and sodium nitrate both turn myoglobin red, but nitrate attaches with a more stable bond and so the color lasts longer.
Although for several hundred years, nitrites and nitrates have been used to preserve the color of meat, more recent evidence shows that these chemicals also inhibit the growth of bacteria, including the bacteria that cause the deadly disease, botulism.
As a seasoned food science expert with a profound understanding of food preservatives, particularly nitrites, I bring to the table a wealth of knowledge derived from years of research, hands-on experience, and a commitment to staying abreast of the latest developments in the field.
Nitrites, commonly found in bacon, hotdogs, and cold cuts, have sparked concerns due to their association with cancer in laboratory animals. However, it is crucial to delve deeper into their multifaceted role as one of the oldest and most widespread food preservatives.
Nitrites and their close relatives, nitrates, are elemental compounds comprising oxygen and nitrogen attached to other elements like sodium or potassium. Potassium nitrate, historically known as saltpeter, was first utilized in the Middle Ages. Presently, sodium nitrite has taken precedence as the predominant food preservative.
Let's dissect the intricacies of nitrites in the context of red meat. The vibrant red hue of fresh meat in supermarkets stems from the presence of myoglobin, a pigment that stores oxygen in muscle cells. Myoglobin appears red when bonded to oxygen molecules, which can be sourced from the blood in live animals or directly from the air in freshly cut meat. However, this red color is transient; aging, cooking, and bacterial action lead to the separation of oxygen from myoglobin, resulting in a shift to a brownish-gray shade.
The pivotal role of nitrites comes into play in preserving the appealing red color of meat. Nitrites bond with myoglobin, acting as a surrogate for oxygen. Both oxygen and sodium nitrate contribute to myoglobin's red color, but nitrate forms a more stable bond, prolonging the color retention.
Beyond their aesthetic function, recent evidence has shed light on additional benefits of nitrites and nitrates. These compounds not only preserve color but also exhibit inhibitory effects on bacterial growth. Notably, they can hinder the development of bacteria, including those responsible for the potentially fatal disease, botulism.
In conclusion, the use of nitrites in food preservation is deeply rooted in history and tradition, and despite concerns related to cancer in animal studies, their multifunctional properties make them indispensable in the food industry. As we navigate the intricate landscape of food science, it is imperative to consider both historical practices and contemporary evidence to make informed decisions about food safety and preservation.
Nitrite reacts in the meat tissue to form nitric oxide, which binds tightly to the iron in myoglobin and turns it a stable red. Nitrite is also toxic to many microbes, including the bacteria that cause botulism, so it's a critical preservative in cured sausages.
NITRATES and nitrites have been used for some time in curing of red meat products. Nitrite reacts with myoglobin to produce nitrosomyoglobin which is red in color. Upon heating this nitrosomyoglobin is converted to a pink component nitrosohemochrome.
When exposed to air, myoglobin forms the pigment, oxymyoglobin, which gives meat a pleasingly cherry-red color. The use of a plastic wrap that allows oxygen to pass through it helps ensure that the cut meats will retain this bright red color.
Myoglobin is found in muscle cells, where it stores oxygen to help provide energy. State comes from slow-twitch cow muscle. These muscles are used for extended activity, rather than short bursts, so they have a lot of myoglobin to meet that continuous energy demand.
So, many meat manufacturers treat beef and pork with carbon monoxide. The carbon monoxide binds with a pigment in the meat and keeps the colors vibrant and red.
Due to the formation of nitrosamine compounds, a large amount of which are considered to be carcinogenic, cancer risk is the most serious adverse effect of nitrate and nitrite intake [33].
Nitrites in various meat products are significant preservatives and impede the growth of several unwanted micro-organisms [6,7]. Nitrite is added to cured meat at levels less than 150 ppm to prevent the development of microbiological organisms like Clostridium botulinum, which causes food poisoning [8].
Oxygen from the air reacts with meat pigments to form a bright red color which is usually seen on the surface of meat purchased in the supermarket. The pigment responsible for the red color in meat is oxymyoglobin, a substance found in all warm-blooded animals. Fresh cut meat is purplish in color.
Dye is not used on meat meat however Carbon Monoxide is a common treatment for beef and tuna. Just like your lips turn red when exposed to carbon monoxide, red meat turns redder and stays redder when put in a CO rich area. This is not dangerous to eat because you have to breath CO for it to be a probl...
Look: Red meat should be bright red — that's when it's at its freshest. If it turns purple or brown-ish, it is probably still safe to eat, but it has been exposed to some oxygen. As raw chicken spoils, it turns from pink to a greyish colour.
Beef is called a red meat because it contains more myoglobin than chicken or fish. Oxygen is delivered to muscles by the red cells in the blood. One of the proteins in meat, myoglobin, holds the oxygen in the muscle. The amount of myoglobin in animal muscles determines the color of meat.
While vitamin b12 aids proper nerve health and ensures that the red blood cells function properly, zinc is responsible for strengthening your immune system. White meat contains fewer nutrients in comparison to red meat.
Myoglobin content is higher in beef and lower in poultry with lamb and pork having intermediate amounts. The age of an animal will also impact the myoglobin content of the muscles with older animals having more myoglobin and darker meat.
Factory-style farming means fewer nutrients in the meat. Mass-produced meat is also more likely to contain antibiotics and growth hormones. Factory-style farmingalso includes additives in animal feed.
If you've ever wondered why grocery store beef maintains that bright red color so well, the answer is unfortunately tied to a common practice of treating the beef with carbon monoxide to slow oxidization.
Meat at lower degrees of doneness such as rare (140 F) and medium rare (145 F) has not fully denatured and still provides some red or pinkish red color to the cooked meat. For the most part, this holds true for whole muscle fresh meat purchased at retail, however this is not always the case.
Nitric oxide binds to myoglobin and changes fresh meat color to a bright red known as nitroslymyoglobin. Subsequent heating of meat containing the NO-myoglobin complex causes chemical reactions and changes myoglobin to a compound known as nitrosylhemochrome. This produces the characteristic pink color of cured meats.
Myoglobin, a protein, is responsible for the majority of the red color. Purplish in color, when it is mixed with oxygen, it becomes oxymyoglobin and produces a bright red color. The meat from older animals will be darker in color because the myoglobin level increases with age.
Sodium nitrate and nitrite are added to processed and cured meats to preserve shelf life and to give them flavor and a pink color. Nitrates and nitrites are also found in vegetables such as celery and spinach, and as contaminants in tap water.
After several days of exposure to air, the iron atom of myoglobin becomes oxidized and loses its ability to bind oxygen (the myoglobin molecule is now called metmyoglobin). In this oxidized condition, meat turns to a brown colour.
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