Let’s talk about nitrates, and whether they’re as “bad” as everyone seems to think.

When most people in today’s world hear about nitrates, they think of bacon, because nitrates are often used to preserve bacon (along with processed meats like salami and deli meat).

There’s a LOT of talk about nitrates being bad for you, and increasing your risk of cancer.

But like a lot of health-related issues out there, the topic of nitrates has been cherry-picked and blown out of proportion, so that most people think all nitrates are bad.

The truth is: They’re not.

Nitrates and nitrites, like potassium nitrate and sodium nitrite, are naturally occurring chemical compounds containing nitrogen and oxygen. Both are preservatives that suppress harmful bacteria in bacon, salami, ham and certain cheeses.

Nitrates also occur naturally in many vegetables. Leafy greens, like spinach, tend to have the most nitrate content. Other nitrate-heavy veggies include celery, beetroot juices, and carrots.

Veggies get nitrates and nitrites from the soil they’re grown in, because natural mineral deposits include nitrates, and nitrites form from soil microorganisms that break down animal matter.

Nitrates are also an active ingredient in some angina medications.

Clearly, not “all nitrates” are automatically bad.

The nitrates in preserved meats, like bacon, salami, and deli meats are the ones thought to increase your risk of cancer (notice I wrote increase your risk, not CAUSE cancer – big difference), yet here’s what you’ve gotta remember about what you eat and cancer.

If you’re looking to avoid cancer, SUGAR is the food you avoid, because sugar feeds cancer cells.

If you’re eating sugary foods and drinking sugary beverages all day most days (or eating a lot of crappy high-carb foods that turn to sugar in the body), and you’re buying nitrate-free bacon thinking you’re making a healthy choice, please understand that nitrates in bacon are the least of your worries.

Is processed meat the most IDEAL meat in the world?

No, it’s not.

Can it be a step in a direction of better choices – say, going from pizza and soda to salami, pickles, and cream cheese?

YES, absolutely.

And while I would love for everyone reading this to be able to access and eat the highest quality meats and produce they possibly can, not everyone is in a place where they can do so.

Rather than tell you that you HAVE to eat organic and avoid meat preserved with nitrates in order to lose weight and feel better, I’m telling you to move in a direction of better choices.

We have Code Red Rebels who go from the Standard American Diet and/or a diet of junk food to eating bacon, eggs, and avocado several times a week. They lose weight, feel better physically, notice fewer aches and pains, and enjoy reduced menopause symptoms (sometimes those go away entirely), to name just a few of the benefits Code Red Rebels experience.

Clearly, bacon is not “the worst thing in the world.”

Bottom line: Meat preserved with nitrates may not be the cleanest, most pure choice in the world.

But it’s not necessarily the devil it’s made out to be, either, especially when the rest of your diet is clean.

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1) On your computer, create your account at www.CodeRedLifestyle.com/App.

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