Aluminum Cookware and Alzheimer’s?*
Alzheimer’s disease has been associated with quantities of atomic aluminum in the brain. Some of the material from aluminum cookware can combine with acid foods, but no pathway is known for ingested aluminum to pass the blood/brain barrier. However, inhaled aluminum vapor or dust may travel through the olfactory nerve, directly to the brain.† Note that during the cooking of food, the bottom of aluminum cookware is directly exposed to a flame or other form of heat. Is it possible that this high temperature causes harmful amounts of aluminum to vaporize and be breathed by those nearby? I play safe by avoiding aluminum cookware—even if the part that touches the food is stainless steel or teflon.
*From Robert Chuckrow, The Intelligent Dieter’s Guide, Rising Mist Publications, Briarcliff Manor, NY, 1997.
†See The New York Times, May 2, 1987, for an article on research done by Dr. Daniel P. Perl, reported in Lancet, April 30, 1987.
©Copyright 1997 by Robert Chuckrow
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