Nitrate and nitrite intake in Swedish children from food
What it found
About 12% of four-year-old Swedish children went over the daily limit for nitrite when the body's own conversion of nitrate was included.
No child went over the daily limit for nitrate itself.
What they found
Studies in people
Nitrite from cured meat
Average nitrite intake from cured meats was very low across all age groups. Only three children out of 2259, or 0.1%, went over the acceptable daily limit of 0.07 mg per kg of body weight. Chicken sausage was the biggest source for two of those children.
Nitrate from food and water
Average daily nitrate intake dropped as children got older, measuring 0.84, 0.68 and 0.45 mg per kg of body weight for ages 4, 8-9 and 11-12. Vegetables, fruit, cured meats and drinking water were all counted. Not a single child went over the acceptable daily limit of 3.7 mg per kg of body weight.
Total nitrite including body conversion
The body turns some nitrate into nitrite, estimated here at 5%. When this internal conversion was added to the nitrite from meat, about 12% of the four-year-olds exceeded the nitrite limit. For the older groups, only 3% and 1% went over it.
Where nitrate comes from
Drinking water made up 21-26% of total nitrate intake. Of the nitrate coming from food alone, about 98% came from fruit and vegetables, while cured meat provided just 2%. Sausages of all kinds supplied roughly 77% of the nitrite found in cured meats.
What the authors conclude
- They conclude that nitrite taken in directly from cured meat is generally low and within limits for Swedish children.
- They note that nitrate intake from food and water stays well below the accepted safety margin.
- They advise that total nitrite exposure may be a concern for younger children once the body's own conversion of nitrate to nitrite is factored in.
How it was done
Nitrate and nitrite occur naturally in food and are also added to cured meats. Scientists worry about them because they can form cancer-linked compounds and cause a blood condition that affects oxygen, especially in infants.
Researchers tracked everything eaten and drunk by 2259 Swedish children aged 4, 8-9 and 11-12 over four days using food diaries. They then measured nitrate and nitrite levels in 40 samples of cured meats bought in shops, combined this with existing data on vegetables and water, and calculated daily intakes per kilogram of body weight.
What it can’t tell you
- This work measured what children ate rather than tracking health outcomes, so it cannot show whether these intake levels actually cause harm.
- The estimates rely on a short four-day diary and a limited number of meat samples, which might not reflect long-term eating habits.
- The calculation assumes the body converts 5% of nitrate to nitrite, but some people may convert up to 20%, meaning true exposure could differ.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Sweden
The paper
- Title
- Estimated dietary intake of nitrite and nitrate in Swedish children
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Larsson K, Darnerud PO, Ilbäck NG, Merino L (2011). Estimated dietary intake of nitrite and nitrate in Swedish children. Food additives & contaminants. Part A, Chemistry, analysis, control, exposure & risk assessment. doi:10.1080/19440049.2011.555842Free full textPubMed 21400324DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error