NaNO2 is quite poisonous. It was used to kill feral hogs, the lethal dose is IIRC 5-10 g per adult hog. It releases weak smell similar to chlorine and
hogs have excellent scent so it must be packed e.g. into gelatin capsules to prevent its scent to spread and put these capsules into bait food. It
causes methemoglobinemia. Antidote for methemoglobinemia is methylene blue.EF2000 - 17-12-2023 at 23:19
Sodium nitrite has been promoted on a certain pro-suicide website (the one that is shortened same as Schutzstaffel, coincidence?) since at least 2020,
and numbers of depressed kids who followed such misadvice is mounting.
So it's not surprising that even in the land of burgers and freedom, severe regulations are proposed, like that: Chemical Used in Suicides Faces Sales Ban Under Proposed Law (note that it's bipartisan). As always, it's much easier to ban compound and mark
issue as resolved, than to improve mental healthcare.
This thread is better suited for "Legal and Societal Issues", isn't it?Keras - 18-12-2023 at 00:41
As usual, this is — as EF2000 says – putting lipstick on a pig. If people don’t have access to sodium nitrite, they’ll turn to something else.
Paracetamol, fentanyl, etc.unionised - 18-12-2023 at 01:08
Americans will ban anything lethal- except guns.FableP - 18-12-2023 at 01:49
I was lucky to find a place in Aus that sells it in 2.5kg bags, its not particularly cheap but at that weight it should last a lifetime.Metacelsus - 18-12-2023 at 07:48
I'd bet NaNO2 kills far more people through its use in cured meats (forming carcinogenic nitrosamines) than through suicides.Rainwater - 18-12-2023 at 18:36
Yall Making me hungry, its about that time for some streaklean amd grits Sir_Gawain - 18-12-2023 at 22:10
What are they going to ban next? Tall buildings?Metacelsus - 19-12-2023 at 06:13
Well, zoning laws *are* a thing.clearly_not_atara - 19-12-2023 at 07:28
I'd bet NaNO2 kills far more people through its use in cured meats (forming carcinogenic nitrosamines) than through suicides.
In defense of NaNO2, the alternative celery tends to produce even more nitrosamines, since it is infeasible to cure meats without nitrite and when
using a non-standardized plant extract, the amount cannot be precisely controlled, so is more likely to overshoot what is necessary. Meanwhile,
oxynitrogen anions may be important in nitric oxide homeostasis: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S108986030...
While a link between processed meats consumption and cancer can be considered well established, it has been difficult to quantify the effects of a
particular dose of nitrite, with some studies showing effects below statistical significance. Nitrite-like compounds, including S-nitroso compounds,
are produced in the body as a part of necessary metabolic processes: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027869151...
It is plausible that the link between cured meats and cancer is not due to nitrite but instead to other constituents, which may include microbial
toxins that form during its production. In particular, Aspergillus spp. are present in most indoor and outdoor air around the world and can
produce carcinogenic aflatoxins and ochratoxins. Another possibility is that carcinogens are formed during abiotic aerobic oxidation of compounds in
meat during the curing process. Of course, it is also plausible that due to decades of health advice to avoid cured meats, people consuming them
simply have worse health habits which are difficult to control for.
