Measured the nitrate content in fruits, showing the results

In order for the harvest to be larger and the fruit to ripen earlier, fertilizers are used. But when used excessively, they accumulate in the fruit. Everyone has heard of nitrates.

For several years now I have been using a portable nitrate tester in order to at least sometimes find out the content of these salts in products. This time I decided to show these measurements in products from the supermarket.

MPC data for some fruits and vegetables are entered into the device. You need to select the desired product and start measuring.

Nectarine and apricot were found to be in excess of nitrate content

Banana, pear and greenhouse long cucumber are normal. Values ​​on the screen.

The MPC data for discharges is not included in the device. Perhaps black has slightly overestimated values.

In sausage and ketchup, nitrates are off the charts. Although the fresh meat dimension is chosen for the sausage. Are there nitrates in such concentrations too?

This is because this nitrate tester measures the total salt content. And monosodium glutamate (a preservative that gives the red color) also refers to salts. And in sausage it (and table salt) is always a lot.

Trees could grow on soils with different salt composition and this also affects the readings of the device. They might not even have been watered with fertilizers. He did not measure the watermelon and melon. There are so many videos with measurements of these melons. My video with measurements:

What is the content of nitrates per 1 kg of weight permissible for the human body? First, let's see what nitrates are.

Nitrates are salts of nitric acid and are found in all soils. Nitrogen is assimilated by bacteria living in the root system of plants and trees. In general, nitrates in natural concentrations are found in absolutely all vegetables, fruits and berries. Moreover, it all depends on the culture itself:

As you can see, their content is different in different cultures. But to increase the yield, nitrates, as the most inexpensive fertilizer, are introduced into the soil. By themselves, nitrates in the human body are safe. But they can convert to nitrites and amines. And they, in turn, affect the absorption of oxygen by hemoglobin and wash out iodine from the body.

There is a maximum concentration limit for nitrates in the body. WHO has established this figure for a person - 3.7 mg per 1 kg of body weight. But in different countries this MPC is different. For example, in Germany: 50-100 mg, and in the USA it is 400-500 mg. Perhaps such an overestimation of the MPC for nitrates is connected there with a powerful lobby of farmers. In Russia, the following values ​​are established:

But who will measure and calculate how much nitrates you ate? You can exceed the MPC in your body by eating 200-300 grams of vegetable salad.

More dangerous are pesticides in food. There are no pocket devices to detect them. And they, together with nitrates, are widely used to treat plants and trees from insect pests. It is not for nothing that in Russia many summer residents are trying to grow and make a winter supply of their vegetables.