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Nitrate in baby foods. Adding to the nitrate mosaic
L B Dusdieker1, J P Getchell, T M Liarakos
1Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City.
Objective:
To identify commercial baby food varieties high in nitrate content using ion chromatography and compare the health risk associated with the consumption of high-nitrate water and high-nitrate commercial baby food.
Design:
Ion chromatographic determination of nitrate concentration in a variety of commercial baby foods.
Setting:
University Hygienic Laboratory, University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City.
Patients:
None.
Results:
Commercial baby foods with nitrate levels higher than 45 ppm include mixed vegetables, bananas, carrots, garden vegetables, spinach, green beans, and beets. The amount of nitrate in one 113-g (4 oz) jar of beets, for example, is equivalent to the amount of nitrate in nearly 5.5 L of water at 45 ppm nitrate.
Conclusions:
A controlled clinical trial is needed to clarify how consuming high-nitrate foods correlates with methemoglobin levels in infants younger than 6 months.