Cookware - Non-Stick Related to Alzheimers?

[sfdavis918]

I had a customer tell me that her mother threw out all her non-stick pots and pans and bought new ones because of the whole alzheimers scare. I thought I saw a flyer around about the type of non-stick material on ours was not related to that. Anyone have any info?

Thanks!
Sarah

 

[Marg]

The whole Alzheimers scare was related to aluminum cookware and it's false.

It's time to prepare dinner. Chances are your pots and pans are aluminum. You might also notice that your disposable roasting pans and pie pans are aluminum. And you probably use aluminum foil to cover your food while cooking, as well as storing it later. Lightweight and an excellent heat conductor, aluminum is well suited as a material for cookware. With all this aluminum around, it's important to ask: "Is aluminum a health risk?"

Past research linked aluminum to Alzheimer's disease
In the 1970s, research on Alzheimer's disease showed excessive amounts of aluminum in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. As a result, there was concern in the medical community that aluminum might cause or at least contribute to the development of the disease. One medical commentator in the New England Journal of Medicine even planned to dispose of all his aluminum cookware.

How common is aluminum in our environment?
Aluminum is the third most abundant element in the earth's crust after oxygen and silicon, making up about 8% of the surface. It finds its way into the air and water and is taken up by plants from the soil. With that much of the element on earth, if it were toxic to living creatures, there would not be many around.

How much do we ingest when we use aluminum cookware?
Modern aluminum cookware is anodized or otherwise coated to harden the finish and make it resistant to food sticking. That process reduces the amount that gets into food. Acidic or highly salty foods tend to leach more aluminum out than other foods. Still, that is not really a problem. Most ingested aluminum is eliminated in the stool, but some is absorbed. Very little of the aluminum we ingest comes from cookware. In a worst case scenario, a person using uncoated aluminum cookware and storing all food in aluminum containers is likely to absorb about three or four milligrams of aluminum a day.

Medication is probably the greatest source of aluminum in our diets. Antacids contain aluminum. In the days before effective medications for acid suppression, a person with acid reflux might consume 1,000 milligrams of aluminum daily.

What really causes Alzheimer's?
Even if we absorbed more aluminum than we already do, despite what some fear mongers say, aluminum is not considered a risk for Alzheimer's disease. Current research suggests that Alzheimer's disease is the result of inflammation and hardening of the arteries. Aluminum in patients' brains probably finds its way there after the disease develops.

Aluminum and its risks
There are a few risks associated with aluminum. Excessive amounts in children with kidney disease can affect bone strength. In some animals, large amounts-in excess of what is possible to ingest in a normal person's diet-affect fetal brain and skeletal development. Also, people can develop skin sensitivity to aluminum chlorhydrate in deodorants.

The bottom line
There is no reason to fear a problem from the tiny amount of aluminum we get from our cookware and utensils. We might eat too many calories, but we are not likely to eat too much aluminum.

 

[Marg]

And our cookware is hard anodized.

 

[DebbieJ]

Our cookware is hard anodized aluminum and does not leach into the water or food you are cooking. There is nothing to worry about.

 

[chefjwr]

There are also some health concerns associated with TEFLON. Now are pans use AUTOGRAPH

 

[chefjwr]

sorry--accidentally posted too soon.
Now are pans use AUTOGRAPH but I don't know if it is made from similar material as Teflon. The web could fill you in on health problems assoicated with Teflon. I would like to be able to say that for sure AUTOGRAPH causes none of those same problems. I just don't know. Does anyone have a link?

Julie

 

[Pampered Laura]

"What is Teflon®?"

Teflon® is the brand name for DuPont's original non-stick coating. In fact, DuPont scientists invented non-stick technology. Today, there are many companies producing non-stick coatings for cookware, such as T-Fal®'s "Super T®" and Whitford's "Xylon®" and "Excalibur®." However, the best known brands are made by DuPont. The quality of DuPont's non-stick coatings from good to best are: Teflon® II, SilverStone® Select and Autograph®.

"Will the non-stick hurt me if I swallow it?"

NO. Non-stick coatings are safe and pose no hazard to human health. In the event that particles of non-stick coating are accidentally ingested, there is no danger because the coatings are inert and non-toxic. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has found the composition of non-stick coatings acceptable for conventional kitchen use.

http://www.housewarehouse.com/nonstickperformance.htm

 

[missydivine]

Thanks for the information.