Most people do not give their cookware a second thought and up until the last few years, I didn't either. Six years ago my wife was diagnosed with Parkinson 's disease.
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that impairs motor skills, cognitive processes, and other functions. PD is the most common cause of chronic progressive syndrome characterized by tremor, rigidity, bradykinesia and postural instability. Among non motor symptoms are autonomic dysfunction and sensory and sleep difficulties. Cognitive and neurobehavioral problems, including dementia, are common in the advanced stages of the disease.
A diagnosis like that can cause a lot of things to change in your life. There is no cure for Parkinson's and the treatment is one of masking or limiting the symptoms as much as possible. It is also a progressive disease that moves at different rates in each person.
Few things are known for sure about Parkinson's but the general feeling is that some people are more genetically prone to get the disease than others and that the environment is the trigger. As they say, "Genetics loads the gun and the environment pulls the trigger."
Possible environmental causes or triggers tend to skew towards the absorption of metals and pesticides in the body. Is this the cause? No probably not, but it may be factor worth considering. At this stage of the game, I am looking for ways to slow the problem, not compound it. So when I heard that aluminum cookware may leach aluminum into the food I took notice and did a little research.
I found that the first stamped and cast aluminum cookware was manufactured in 1892 by a company in Pittsburgh which later became known as ALCOA. Believe it or not, it was not a big hit. In fact it was not well received at all because of quality concerns. I was surprised to learn that it took over 50 years before aluminum pots and pans actually gained acceptance with the general public.
Of course today, the concerns raised are not about quality, they are medical concerns. The main worry is that toxic levels of aluminum could be absorbed into the body when cooking with the metal, possibly even causing Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease.
That's a pretty strong concern to have and my research shows that cookware is not the only exposure to aluminum that we have on a daily basis. In fact to be fair, it's almost impossible to avoid it in the environment. It is the third most abundant element in the Earth's crust and can be found in our air and water. It is also found in medicines, deodorants and, of course, in aluminum cookware. Scientists that measure such things tell us that the average person intakes anywhere from 3 to 50 mg of aluminum each day. Those of us lucky enough to also use aluminum cookware can expect to ingest an additional 3 to 6 mg each time they cook with the pots and pans.
So exactly what do we know about metals and the human body? Well obviously the aluminum is toxic in excessive amounts. For example, the intake of too much aluminum might impair the kidneys, which excrete the metal. Toxic levels of aluminum have also been linked to anemia, decreased liver function, poor coordination, calcium deficiency and memory loss among other health issues.
Although both are serious neurological diseases, Alzheimer's is a much better known disease than Parkinson's and therefore one of the biggest worries of our aging population is that using aluminum pots and pans might cause Alzheimer's. The facts are, that researchers conducting autopsies on many, but not all, Alzheimer's patients discovered higher levels of aluminum in their brains.
The facts are that there is no definitive proof that aluminum is the smoking gun or even a contributor to Alzheimer’s or Parkinson's and the FDA says it's safe. To top that off, it's lightweight, low-priced and a great heat conductor and Aluminum can be found in about half of manufactured cookware today.
So why have I decided to opt out and avoid aluminum cookware? Here are my reasons:
1. Aluminum is highly reactive. Cooking acidic foods such as tomatoes or tomato sauce can cause leaching. The food actually absorbs the aluminum from the pot or pan, which means you will be swallowing aluminum particles traced back to the cookware. In addition to avoiding cooking acidic foods in aluminum cookware, it is also advisable not to store them in aluminum products. I even avoid using aluminum foil.
2. Try this experiment. Take a clean aluminum pot and put a half glass of water in the pan and use a clean scouring (soap-less) pad to scrub the inside of the pan. Now pour the water into the glass and look at the residue in the water. Try the same experiment with stainless steel cookware and you will find no residue.
3. I do not trust the FDA. It's not that they are lying to me on purpose, but they sometimes don't know what they don't know. How many times have you heard them tell you something is safe only to find it pulled off the market later because they were wrong. Right now they do not think adding another 3-6 mg of aluminum to your body each time you cook is bad for you. Really! They also do not think that overtime it could build up and present a problem. But here' the thing, they do not know for sure. It's not personal to them but it certainly is to me. As they say in the south, "They don't have a dog in this hunt but I do".
4. There are alternatives to aluminum cookware out there so why gamble. Should I risk it because it's cheaper or some bureaucrat says, "they think it's safe enough to use". Should I use it until someone proves it's linked to a disease? No, it's easier, smarter and safer to buy an alternative cookware set. It may not be the whole answer, but it is a proactive thing that I can do with the knowledge and the facts that I have.
I chose to go with waterless cookware for a variety of reasons such as, low heat cooking, higher nutrition retention, lifetime guarantee, surgical stainless steel construction and more. There are many companies selling sets for a variety of prices. I found no real difference in the high priced ones except their advertising costs. If you want a good set of waterless cookware, you can buy direct and get some great deals. I recommend that you check out Vapo-Seal Cookware I did.
