“And why, exactly, are nitrates bad?”
This question, from our friend Simon, made me realize I had accepted the word of an authority figure without question. I had no idea why an elevated level of nitrates in CJ’s food was bad, but her pediatrician said it was so, and I accepted that.
Nitrates, I knew, are a naturally occurring form of nitrogen absorbed by plants through the roots. Some farmers add nitrates to the soil in the form of fertilizer, and some vegetables, like carrots, beets, and spinach, retain higher levels of nitrates after harvest.
But, after I couldn’t answer Simon’s question, and after Simon left the house, I jumped on the web. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics,
The gastric pH of infants is higher than that in older children and adults, with resultant proliferation of intestinal flora that can reduce the ingested nitrate to nitrite.
Once the nitrate is converted to a nitrite,
the nitrite ion oxidizes ferrous iron in hemoglobin to the ferric state. The resulting compound, methemoglobin, is incapable of binding molecular oxygen… which results in hypoxemia.
This is known as methemoglobinemia, and the resulting lack of oxygen in the blood leads to Blue Baby Syndrome, at which point it’s time for a visit to the hospital.
This is quite a terrifying prospect, and one I would certainly like to avoid. Wouldn’t it be safer to avoid these foods altogether?
The AAP’s policy comforted me a little. The Abstract states,
There seems to be little or no risk of nitrate poisoning from commercially prepared infant foods in the United States. However, reports of nitrate poisoning from home-prepared vegetable foods for infants continue to occur.
OK, but when could I start feeding her the same food we eat? According to the same policy statement,
home-prepared infant foods from vegetables (eg, spinach, beets, green beans, squash, carrots) should be avoided until infants are 3 months or older, although there is no nutritional indication to add complementary foods to the diet of the healthy term infant before 4 to 6 months of age.
CJ was 8 months old when we were in Oxford.
In other words, not only was it something we shouldn’t worry about, but according to the AAP’s own statement, it’s something most parents don’t need to worry about. If you’re not feeding your baby anything but breast milk or formula until 4-6 months, as they recommend, then you’re already out of the proverbial woods.
Apparently, the main problem is not with homemade baby food, nor is that even the main subject of the policy statement.
The greatest risk of nitrate poisoning (methemoglobinemia) occurs in infants fed well water contaminated with nitrates.
Well water.
Considering there haven’t been wells in Manhattan since 1842, I’d say I was over-concerned about nitrates in CJ’s diet.
(cross-posted at domestic father)