What is Niter?

[killingworthmaple]

I understand the basics of what niter is. What i'm asking is has there been any studies done of what is the chemical makeup of niter, is it good or bad for you? My son wants to eat it on toast should I be concerned of ill effect of too much niter intake. I've always wondered if it's loaded with minerals could it be used as a dietary supplement. FYI We run a pretty clean operation no lead all food grade containers. If there is anyone knowledgeable on the subject I would love to hear from you Thanks.

Nathan

[DrTimPerkins]

https://mapleresearch.org/pub/m1212chemicalcomposition/

Niter can cause stomach upset and diarrhea. If any of the equipment you use (buckets, spouts, tanks, evaporator) contains lead or if your tanks are open to the air and can gather roadside dust, the niter can have a substantial quantity of lead since a lot (but not all) tends to get bound up in the niter. Make your son some maple cream instead.

[ecolbeck]

Perhaps its worth noting that the niter we filter out of syrup is only that which has precipitated out of solution. There is still niter (and other minerals) in solution in finished syrup. Whatever benefits those minerals offer can be had by consuming syrup itself.