nitrite

November 2, 2023

EPA restarts assessment of health risks from nitrate in water

By Brett Walton

The US Environmental Protection Agency, reversing a Trump-era decision, is restarting a human health assessment of nitrate and nitrite, a move that has potentially far-reaching regulatory implications for one of the country’s most pervasive drinking water contaminants.

The EPA suspended its nitrate assessment in December 2018. It was one of nine chemicals that the Trump administration deemed no longer a priority for evaluation by the agency’s health assessment division known as the Integrated Risk Information System, or IRIS.

That changed in June when the EPA quietly reinserted the nitrate assessment into the IRIS agenda “to address an agency priority.”

The decision to take a closer look at the chemical comes at a time of increased scrutiny and public concern over nitrate exposure and human health. Nitrate forms when nitrogen is exposed to oxygen in the air. An exponential increase in the use of synthetic, nitrogen-based fertilizers since 1950 supercharged the production of corn and soybeans. The number of large livestock feeding operations — and the amount of manure they produce — also increased rapidly.

Nutrients are essential to crop production. But the convergence of high rates of chemical fertilizer use and immense manure production led to well-documented risks to human health and the environment. In addition to generating heat-trapping greenhouse gases, over-application of nitrogen-rich fertilizer and manure contributed to steadily rising levels of nitrate in streams and groundwater, particularly in the 11 Corn Belt states across the Great Lakes and Midwest, California’s Central Valley, North Carolina, and Washington’s Yakima Valley.

April 28, 2023

Groups seek emergency action from EPA on nitrate pollution in Minnesota

A coalition of environmental groups is petitioning federal regulators to take emergency action to protect residents of southeastern Minnesota from “imminent and substantial endangerment’ to their health from the contamination of drinking water sources by a pollutant linked to cancers and other health problems.

Nitrate contamination in the region ” is a widespread issue that has stubbornly persisted through decades as state officials continuously fail to effectively address the problem,” the petition states.

The effort echoes pleas from public and environmental health advocates around the country over the harmful impacts of nitrate contamination, which mainly originates in agricultural runoff. Nitrate contamination of drinking water has been linked to “blue baby syndrome,” or methemoglobinemia (a sometimes-fatal condition affecting infants), as well as certain cancers, and thyroid disease, even in studies where contamination was below legal limits.

High levels of nitrate in water can be a result of runoff or leakage from fertilized farm fields, landfills, animal manure, and other sources.

The petition calls on the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to use its powers under the Safe Drinking Water Act to ensure safe drinking water for Minnesota residents, calling nitrate pollution a “too-long ignored health crisis.” Among other steps, the groups want the EPA to block the development of new large animal feeding operations, which are considered significant contributors to nitrate pollution because of the large amounts of animal manure generated.

“We need help,” said Jeff Broberg, director of the Minnesota Well Owners Organization whose own well water is contaminated with nitrates. “Our drinking water quality keeps getting worse.”

January 18, 2023

Common food additive associated with type 2 diabetes risk

By Grace van Deelen

Chemical compounds commonly used to cure ham, bacon and other meats are associated with type 2 diabetes risk, according to new research.

Nitrites are often used to extend the shelf life of food products. While harmless nitrites also occur naturally in foods, nitrite additives have been linked to certain cancers. A study published this week in PLOS Medicine has determined another health risk from the chemicals: type 2 diabetes. Researchers found people with elevated intake of nitrites, specifically from food additives and drinking water, had a higher risk of eventually developing the disease.

The study authors wrote that their findings show a “direct association” between nitrite additives and type 2 diabetes risk. The study is the first to find an association between the chemicals and type 2 diabetes.

The research team, which included scientists from the World Health Organization, the University of Paris, and Sorbonne University, used data from a nationwide study of over 100,000 French adults that tracked their dietary choices and health status between 2009 and 2021. From that data, the team estimated nitrite exposure. Participants with higher exposure to nitrites from food additives, and specifically those with higher exposure to sodium nitrite, had a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Processed meats were the biggest source of nitrite additives consumed by study participants, at 60%, followed by ready-to-eat meals with processed meats at 16%. Other foods with processed meats made up virtually all of the nitrite consumption.