Denmark actually has quite a bit in common with Iowa; the country has a population of roughly 6 million people, but raises almost 30 million pigs per year. Iowa raises about 25 millions hogs/year and has a human population of about 3.2 million people. But one thing Denmark doesn’t have in common with Iowa is that their government take nitrates in drinking water very, very seriously!

In this episode of Canary in a Cornfield, the podcast explores the connection between nitrates in drinking water and cancer with Professor Thor Halldorsson from the University of Iceland. Professor Halldorsson chaired the Denmark Ministry of the Environment's Scientific Committee, which suggested a new drinking water standard significantly lower than the current EU and US standards. The discussion delves into the biological mechanisms linking nitrates to cancer, particularly colorectal cancer, and highlights a comprehensive study involving 1.7 million people in Denmark. The episode also covers the differences in nitrate measurement between the US and EU, the agricultural context of Denmark, and how these findings could influence global standards.

Some links from the podcast:

The report from the Denmark Ministry of the Environment.

The Schullehner et al 2018 study “Nitrate in drinking water and colorectal cancer risk: A nationwide population-based cohort study”

Another important study: “Source-specific nitrate and nitrite intake and association with colorectal cancer in the Danish Diet, Cancer and Health Cohort”