For your brain’s sake, beware of aluminum in food, drugs and cosmetics

Can you guess how researchers give laboratory rats Alzheimer’s disease?

It’s simple — they just feed them aluminum!

That’s right, aluminum. The same metal that’s used in food and drugs, pots and pans and applied to our underarms every day.

For years we’ve known that aluminum can be toxic for our brains. Now, a group of international researchers has issued the biggest warning yet about the dangers of aluminum.

And it goes way beyond “just” Alzheimer’s.

It turns out that aluminum can poison every part of your body and could have you on the fast track to an early grave.

That’s why you need to take five imports steps today to reduce your exposure to this toxic substance.

Here, there and everywhere

Of all the things the FDA has dropped the ball on, protecting us against unnecessary aluminum exposure takes top honors.

Because not only does it seem to think aluminum is safe as mother’s milk, it’s against FDA rules to sell an antiperspirant in the U.S. that doesn’t contain it!

For years I’ve been warning you about the dangers of aluminum and why you should be avoiding it whenever you can.

But if you want to get yourself more motivated to do that, brush up on your French and get the latest copy of Morphologie, a medical journal published in France that has devoted an entire issue to the dangers of aluminum.

For starters, the researchers say it’s “reasonably clear” that aluminum can alter the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord) to resemble the deadly changes found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients.

Next, there’s aluminum and its connection to breast cancer. One article tells how an area of the breast right next to where antiperspirants are applied is also where there is a “disproportionately high incidence of breast cysts and breast cancer.”

Then there’s the effect aluminum can have on our GI tract. This is particularly important considering how it’s added to so many foods (especially baked goods) and drugs, not to mention what we absorb from aluminum cookware and foil.

The researchers also warned that the aluminum we ingest can not only harm our good intestinal bacteria, but interfere with our gut immune system. For the icing on the aluminum cake, it can also up the odds of developing inflammatory bowel disease.

And last, but certainly not least, there’s the aluminum that’s put into vaccines as an “adjuvant,” something that is supposed to boost your immune response to a shot.

Experts say that if you wanted to maximize the body’s absorption of this brain-damaging toxin, the very best way is to inject it into your body. Aluminum is added to lots of vaccines, including the pneumonia shot for seniors, the DTaP and polio ones for kids and the HPV vaccines, like Gardasil.

While aluminum is everywhere, we can still take steps to significantly reduce our exposure to it.

And here are five ways to do that:

1. Ditch those antacids: OTC antacids can contain huge amounts of aluminum, and that’s both tablet and liquid brands. If you need heartburn relief, try some ginger or licorice.
2. Stop using antiperspirants: As I said, you won’t find a single antiperspirant sold in the U.S. without some form of aluminum in it. There are, however, numerous brands of aluminum-free deodorants.
3. Read the ingredient label: Look out for aluminum compounds added to foods. And if you’re baking at home, only buy aluminum-free baking powder, which is very easy to find.
4. Be careful what you “foil”: Studies have found that large amounts of aluminum can leach into foods that are cooked or reheated wrapped in aluminum foil. That’s especially true when cooking acidic foods at high temperatures.
5. Watch your water: Studies have found that fluoride can bind to aluminum and send it directly into your brain. If your water if fluoridated, invest in a filtration system that can remove the fluoride (not all do).

Sources:
“How dangerous is aluminum for people? What’s in your armpit?” Joe Graedon, June 6, 2016, The People’s Pharmacy, peoplespharmacy.com