Nitroso Compounds

Nitroso compounds are hazardous chemicals ranging from slightly to highly toxic on the Hodge-Sterner toxicity scale. The carcinogenic activity of many nitroso compounds in a wide range of experimental animals has been thoroughly documented. Tumors in many different organs bear, in some cases, a striking pathologic resemblance to cancers in man. Nevertheless, it is still difficult to claim with confidence that nitrosamines are a causative agent in human cancer. Society is, therefore, faced with the difficult problem of following a prudent path, short of a complete ban of materials and certain foods important in our daily life. At the same time, some limitations and restrictions on the free and possibly careless use of certain chemicals seem justifiable.