One of America’s favorite summer sandwiches — the hot dog — had a wild roller coaster ride last week.

On July 18, the dog had its day, literally.

The third Wednesday in July is National Hot Dog Day and the legendary fast meal in a bun has the resume to back up that status. According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, Americans consume about 20 billion of them a year. That comes to about 70 hot dogs per person.

As for the negative news, a report released that same day by Johns Hopkins University stated that processed meats containing nitrates may lead to higher risk of mania, a mood disorder.

Dr. Robert Yolken, professor at Johns Hopkins who wrote the study, said that there’s growing evidence that germs in the intestines can influence the brain. Data from more than 1,000 people showed those hospitalized for mania (hyperactivity, euphoria and insomnia) were three-and-a-half times more likely to have ever eaten meats cured with nitrates as those who had no history of any mental disorder.

The study did not prove that nitrates cause mania, but that there is an association between consuming nitrates and mania when it does exist. It did point out, however, that eating the occasional cured meat will not cause a manic episode in most people.

The day before National Hot Dog Day, baseball’s all star game was held in Washington, D.C., and we know that both the National pastime and the hot dog have a long association. A line from an iconic auto commercial jingle in 1974 summed up their impact on the American culture:

“Baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet, they go together in the good ol’ USA.”

Sausages have been part of baseball since at least the 1890s. According to one school of thought, they were first served at the ballpark by the German who owned the St. Louis Browns. Another story has it that an ice cream vendor decided to switch his product on a particularly cold day at the ballpark.

While baseball has turned into a more specialized, fan-friendly game, the hot dog too has evolved, becoming more creative in stadium food venues around the nation.

At Nationals Park in Washington, Ben’s Chili Bowl features an “all the way” dog — a family recipe mixing fresh, lean ground beef with secret spices, a rich, saucy chili, onions and cheddar cheese.

In Colorado, Rockies fans have their Rockie Dog, a foot-long dynamo with peppers, onions and sauerkraut. Denver’s Coors Field also features a Triple Play Dog which contains pulled pork, crumbled bacon bits and purple slaw.

Yankee Stadium features the iconic Nathan’s Famous hot dog which the MLB named as the league’s official hot dog this year.

Here in the Keystone state, the Phillies’ Pastrami Sausage is a hit at Citizens Bank Park. The house-cured pastrami sausage is topped with hickory-smoked bacon red cabbage and tarragon mustard.

In Pittsburgh, Pirate fans at PNC Park can feast on the sweet and salty Cracker Jack and Mac Dog, a foot-long beef dog covered in creamy macaroni and cheese, then drizzled with salted caramel sauce and topped with deep-fried pickled jalapeños and caramel-covered popcorn.

Mets fans at Citi Field have their flat-top dogs, featuring a Vienna all-beef or chicken, apple, and sage sausage dog that’s split and griddled until crispy on the outside.

Chicagoans feel the best ballpark hot dog is at Wrigley Field where their all-beef frankfurter on a poppy seed bun comes packed with the traditional relish, tomatoes, onions, sport pickles, a dill pickle spear and mustard.

There’s also the Chicago Dog, an X-treme dog topped with a pickle spear, tomato wedges, sport peppers, relish, diced cucumbers, Gulden’s Mustard and garnished with celery salt; and a Diablo Dog, with red chili, shredded Jack cheese, diced red onion and sliced jalapeños.

Those are just some highlight dogs to spice up the palate and excite the taste buds.

Humphrey Bogart, legendary stage and screen actor, set the bar very high for hot dog competitors by stating that “a hot dog at the game beats roast beef at the Ritz.”

Our most memorable one liner comes from Laurence J. Peter, Canadian educator and author, who had a more practical, down-to-earth definition.

“The noblest of all dogs is the hot-dog,” he stated. “It feeds the hand that bites it.”

By Jim Zbick | tneditor@tnonline.com