Common ingredient in some OTC drugs linked to early-onset Alzheimer’s

Are you taking a dose of Alzheimer’s every day?

Is there a bottle of Alzheimer’s disease sitting in your medicine cabinet?

If you’re chugging down antacids, you need to check the package right away.

Because a new study out of Britain has shown an undeniable link between a common ingredient in some antacids and Alzheimer’s disease.

So before you take another dose, make sure your antacid isn’t giving you a lot more than you — and your brain — bargained for.

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Dementia in a bottle

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They look innocent enough. People take them every day. You don’t need an Rx or your doctor’s permission.

But if you’re taking some common brands of antacids, you’re also taking in a known brain-damaging substance — aluminum.

This isn’t the first time that aluminum has been mentioned as a possible link to Alzheimer’s. But you know how experts always say that “more research is needed”?

Well, the more research they’re always talking about is here.

Scientists at England’s Keele University have called this finding the first “direct link” with high levels of brain aluminum and Alzheimer’s disease.

Their study involves a man in the U.K. who died at the age of 66 with advanced-stage Alzheimer’s. He had been exposed for 8 years to aluminum dust in his job.

Researchers conducted “the most comprehensive investigation ever” of the man’s brain, measuring 49 different tissue samples for aluminum. And they found A LOT of it.

They said that the results show that his job-related aluminum exposure contributed “significantly” to his death from Alzheimer’s.

But it doesn’t seem to matter if your job is making doughnuts or working in a factory breathing in aluminum dust. You’re still at high risk if you’re a big antacid user.

Another study on aluminum and Alzheimer’s, this one out of Norway, calls “regular consumers of antacids” part of a “special group” that have heavy aluminum exposure. And a look at some popular brands of antacids shows why.

• Gelusil tablets contain 200 mg of aluminum hydroxide in each tablet. The directions say you can take up to 12 a day.
• Gaviscon Extra Strength contains 254 mg of aluminum hydroxide in each teaspoon. And the bottle says it’s okay to take up to 4 teaspoons, 4 times a day.
• Even Pepto-Bismol contains “aluminum silicate (listed as an “inactive” ingredient). But for the ‘Big Kahuna’ of added aluminum, you might try some…
• Cherry-flavored Di-gel Maximum strength antacid. It’s got a whopping 400 mg of aluminum hydroxide in each teaspoon.
• And the dosage can be up to 8 teaspoons a day!

But don’t bother to look for any warning on these drugs about chugging down all that aluminum. For that, you need to buy your antacids across the pond.

A popular British brand called Talcid is made with hydrotalcite, a mineral that contains aluminum. Its package insert notes that: “Long-term use of Talcid necessitates regular check of patient’s aluminum level.”

It also warns that anyone with kidney disease is at a greater risk of high blood aluminum. That’s because if you’re kidneys don’t work well, any aluminum that gets into your blood won’t be removed.

Of course, the makers of all those popular American brands of antacids would probably tell you no connections has been proven yet.

But I’ve seen all the proof I need. And there’s certainly no reason to risk it.
So if you take antacids regularly, it’s time to ditch the Di-gel and check the labels (including the “inactive” ingredients) to make sure the one you pick is aluminum-free.

Sources:

“Elevated brain aluminum and early onset Alzheimer’s disease in an individual occupationally exposed to aluminum” February 13, 2014, MNT, medicalnewstoday.com