A cohort study examined the relationship between maternal consumption of meats cured with sodium nitrate on the risk of brain tumors among their children. Nitrites, preservatives used in meat to combat botulism (a form of food poisoning), combine with amines naturally present in meat to form carcinogenic N-nitroso compounds. These compounds have been associated with cancer of the oral cavity, urinary bladder, esophagus, stomach and brain. The researchers interviewed mothers of 549 children under age 20 with a primary brain tumor diagnosed during 1984-1991 and 801 children without cancer. Researchers found an increased brain tumor risk in offspring of mothers with relatively high consumption levels of nitrite from cured meats during their pregnancies; OR = 2.1 for eating at least twice a day compared to not eating. Increasing average daily grams of cured meats or mg of nitrite from cured meats also increased risk (P for each <0.005), however, nitrate from vegetables did not have the same effect. Finally, researchers found that prenatal vitamins taken throughout pregnancy decreased the risk of cancer in offspring (OR=0.54). This study suggests that exposure to N-nitroso compounds, found in cured meats, during pregnancy may be associated with brain tumors in children. (40)
