Bibliographic Details
| Title: |
NOVOS CONCEITOS SOBRE NITRATOS E NITRITOS. |
| Alternate Title: |
NEW CONCEPTS ON NITRATES AND NITRITES. |
| Authors: |
OLIVO, RUBISON1,2,3, THEODORO RIBEIRO, LAIR GERALDO4,5 sintoniagrupo@uol.com.br |
| Source: |
Brazilian Journal of Surgery & Clinical Research. Sep-Nov2018, Vol. 24 Issue 3, p115-125. 11p. |
| Abstract (English): |
Used mainly by the meat industry, nitrates and nitrites are the oldest and most important food additives. With wide applications and functionalities, these components act as preservatives, antioxidants and color and flavor agents, besides promoting physical-chemical and microbiological stability to the products. Companies and consumers, for years, are benefited by the varied action of these ingredients. If on the one hand the advantages are highlighted, on the other hand there is a controversy, rooted since the 1970s, that nitrates and nitrites can cause health damage, possibly reacting with secondary amines of the proteins, forming, under certain conditions, carcinogenic nitrosamines. This argument, however, has been scientifically challenged by the lack of confirmation. In the last two decades, research has shown that being commonly found in nature makes nitrates and nitrites an integral part of plant and animal physiology. Since then, these substances have come to be recognized as bioactive molecules, indispensable in physiological and biochemical functions, with therapeutic applications. This review introduces new concepts about these ingredients that, while facing controversy, play an important role in food safety and human health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Abstract (Portuguese): |
Utilizados, principalmente, pela indústria de carnes, os nitratos e nitritos são os mais antigos e importantes aditivos alimentares. Com aplicações e funcionalidades amplas, esses componentes atuam como conservantes, antioxidantes e agentes de cor e sabor, além de promoverem estabilidade físico-química e microbiológica aos produtos. Empresas e consumidores, há anos, são beneficiados pela ação variada destes ingredientes. Se por um lado destacam-se as vantagens, por outro prevalece a polêmica, enraizada desde a década de 1970, de que nitratos e nitritos podem causar danos à saúde por, eventualmente, reagir com aminas secundárias das proteínas, formando, sob determinadas condições, nitrosaminas cancerígenas. Este argumento, no entanto, tem sido cientificamente contestado pela falta de confirmação. Nas duas últimas décadas, pesquisas têm mostrado que o fato de serem comumente encontrados na natureza tornam os nitratos e nitritos parte integral da fisiologia vegetal e animal. Desde então, estas substâncias passaram a ser reconhecidas como moléculas bioativas, indispensáveis nas funções fisiológicas e bioquímicas, com aplicações, inclusive, terapêuticas. Esta revisão apresenta novos conceitos sobre estes ingredientes que, mesmo enfrentando controvérsias, desempenham importante papel para a segurança alimentar e saúde humana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| Database: |
MedicLatina |
