Eating pickled vegetables frequently can induce nasopharyngeal cancer

Many people like to eat pickled vegetables for a long time, which has become a habit. However, eating too much pickled vegetables will have adverse effects on the body and even induce nasopharyngeal cancer.

Pickles contain a large amount of carcinogens "nitrosamines". Because a lot of salt is added in the process of making pickles and they are easily contaminated by bacteria. If the amount of salt added is less than 15%, the nitrate in the pickles will be reduced to nitrite by microorganisms. The nitrite content increases after one hour of pickling, reaches a peak after two weeks, and lasts for 2 to 3 weeks. When nitrite encounters amine compounds in the body, nitrosamines are generated. Nitrosamines are a strong carcinogen and have a high probability of inducing nasopharyngeal cancer. However, after 9 days of pickling, the nitrite began to decrease. After 15 days, the nitrite in the food dropped to a safe dosage range and can be eaten by people.

In addition, there are pickled sausages, ham and other pickled animal foods. In order to make the food look good, have a strong aroma and meet the processing needs of preservation, the producers may consider adding some nitrite as a food additive. This also increases the possibility of producing nitrosamines, so the intake of such foods should also be controlled.