Location: Methods and Application of Food Composition Laboratory
Project Number: 8040-10700-004-038-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Jul 1, 2024
End Date: May 29, 2027
Objective:
The currently available data on the content of nitrites and nitrates in foods (including beverages) and dietary supplements (DS) are very limited. Up-to-date analytical data are needed for a publicly available dataset which can be used for nutritional and epidemiological research and for developing rational dietary guidance pertinent to multiple health conditions. The purpose of this collaboration is to determine the contributors of nitrites and nitrates and to obtain estimates of values for these compounds in key foods and dietary supplements in the US food supply. The goal is to produce a Special Interest Database on nitrites and nitrates in foods which will be available on https://www.ars.usda.gov/northeast-area/beltsville-md-bhnrc/beltsville-human-nutrition-research-center/methods-and-application-of-food-composition-laboratory.
Approach:
The Methods and Application of Food Composition (MAFCL) plans are to obtain nitrate/nitrite values in selected food samples, including leafy green vegetables, and processed, meat items, raw and cooked, of which analyzed values will be ultimately compiled into a special interest database on dietary nitrates/nitrites in foods. MAFCL has previously consulted with Dr. Norman Hord from University of Oklahoma, as a collaborator; he brings with him a information on the efficacy and benefits of dietary nitrates/nitrites in vegetables and meats.This includes control composites, in collaboration with Virginia Tech University, which can be used as laboratory reference control materials for nitrate/nitrite analysis. These foods will be analyzed at University of Oklahoma or with commercial or other academic laboratories using the Ozone-based Chemiluminescence method. Analytical values from primary and secondary data will be used to generate the special interest database on Nitrate and Nitrites.
Sources of DS information, including the DSLD, NHANES, and market research firms will be used to identify high consumption DS that may also contain high levels of nitrites or nitrates, based on their ingredient listings or label claims. These products will be purchased and tested using the chemiluminescence method mentioned previously. We will identify foods for analysis where published reliable data do not exist, especially if significant contributor of nitrates/nitrites to the US diet. We will evaluate yield/ retention status of the cooked foods and compare amount of nitrates and nitrates available before and after cooking the raw foods. We will develop a special interest database for release on the USDA web site.
