Dietary nitrate – Good or bad?

There has now been a great deal written about inorganic nitrate in both the popular press and in scientific journals. Papers in the 1970s warned us that inorganic nitrate could theoretically be metabolised in the human body to N-nitroso compounds, many of which are undoubtedly carcinogenic. More recently there is evidence that nitrate can undergo metabolic conversion to nitrite and nitric oxide and perform a useful protective function to prevent infection, protect our stomach, improve exercise performance and prevent vascular disease.