Q: Could you tell me if there is a danger using aluminum cookware? I keep hearing reports that it can cause Alzheimer’s disease and other diseases. My mother used aluminum pots for 60 years and at 90 years of age, is just starting to forget. I just love the waterless aluminum pots and have cooked with them since 1975. I am contemplating buying stainless steel ones but I’m sure I won’t be as pleased with them.
A: The debate about whether cooking with aluminum pots increases the risk of Alzheimer’s has been going on for many years, and there still is no definitive answer. Human exposure is unavoidable because aluminum is one of the most common elements found in the environment, including drinking water.
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One of the largest sources of aluminum a person can encounter is in antacid medications. People with acid reflux problems may ingest as much as 1,000 milligrams a day of aluminum hydroxide, which is the major ingredient of many of these preparations. Processed cheese also contains aluminum additives. Most people’s daily intake averages 30 to 50 mg. It has also been discovered that as people age, the levels of aluminum found in their brains increases naturally.
There is a case of a woman in Cornwall, England who drank water accidentally contaminated with aluminum sulfate in 1998. She died in 2004 at the age of 50 from a rare, early onset type of Alzheimer’s disease. An autopsy found high levels of aluminum in her brain. This case launched an investigation that has yet to be concluded.
Drink cans are now coated to prevent leaching of aluminum and so is some of the newer aluminum cookware. The older utensils, such as you possess, are not coated but aluminum does not generally enter the food unless you are cooking acidic fruits or vegetables such as tomatoes, or using vinegar in a recipe. Cooking tomato sauce in these pans was found to accumulate three to six mg of aluminum per 100 mg serving.
I think it is fairly safe for you to continue to use your aluminum cookware provided you avoid these acidic foods and as long as you are not also taking antacid medications. Better still, you could invest in some of the newer coated aluminum cookware that you prefer to stainless steel.
Research on causes of Alzheimer’s disease is focusing more on hereditary factors and a substance known as amyloid that is found in plaques of diseased tissue in the brains of these patients. There may also be links to diabetes, inactivity in the elderly and general arteriosclerotic disease.
Most 90 year olds are forgetful, but this does not mean your mother is developing Alzheimer’s. Even if she has, it is unlikely to be linked to her cooking habits.
Clare Rowson is a retired medical doctor with a practice near Belleville, Ont. Her columns are intended for general information only. Individuals are encouraged to also seek the advice of their own doctor regarding medical questions and treatments.
