Magazine content is available exclusively for TIME subscribers.Medicine: No Nitrite Ban
A cancer link is questioned
For a while, the headlines sounded like a rerun of the saccharin story: LABORATORY TESTS INDICATE COMMON FOOD ADDITIVE CAUSES CANCER ... GOVERNMENT PROPOSES BAN . .. PLAUDITS FROM CONSUMER GROUPS, PROTESTS FROM FOOD INDUSTRY .. . PUBLIC CONFUSED. But this time, the chemical in question was sodium nitrite, a preservative widely used in meat, poultry and fish. Added to $14.5 billion worth of food yearly, mostly processed items like bacon, sausages, hot dogs and cold cuts, the substance not only prevents the growth of botulism-causing bacteria but...
Email, Password or Region is incorrect
A required form parameter was missing.
The System is currently down. Please try again in a few minutes.
Email Address is invalid
Password is blank
Most Popular »
- Watch: Dan Savage Leaves Stephen Speechless on 'Colbert Report'
- 'Anonymous' Knocks CIA Site Offline
- Why American Kids Are Brats
- Icelanders Avoid Inbreeding Through Online Incest Database
- Desperately Seeking Susan Powell: A Best Friend's Quest
- Seriously This Time: Chad Ochocinco Says He Will Change His Name
- The Grand Canyon Bans Sales of Bottled Water
- World Press Photo Awards Announced
- Happy Birthday, Opportunity! Mars Rover Turns 8
- Mired in the Sticky Politics of Health and Faith, Obama Shifts on Contraception
- God vs. Science
- The Rise and Fall of One of the World's Worst-Performing Stock Markets
- New York City: 10 Things to Do
- Nation: Where the Polls Went Wrong
- How City Lights Are Snuffing Out the Stars
- Friends With Benefits
- The Only Child: Debunking the Myths
- What Happens When We Die?
- Study: Children of Lesbians May Do Better Than Their Peers
More News from Our Partners
Top Stories on TIME.com
Quotes of the Day »
