In your book The Straight Dope you wrote about a possible link between aluminum and Alzheimer’s disease. You waffled on the question of whether aluminum actually caused Alzheimer’s and gave your stock response that research was continuing (equivalent to Ann Landers kissing off a question by telling the writer to seek professional advice). Well, here it is 13 years later, during which research presumably has continued. I have read at least two articles in the past few years saying aluminum has been pretty much ruled out as a factor in Alzheimer’s. Isn’t it about time to get your dope straight? –Jerry C., Chicago
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What’s the matter, Jer, wake up on the wrong side of the Dumpster? Much as I’d like to report snappier results, here it is 13 years later, during which time a huge amount of research has been done, and scientists still don’t know for certain what role if any aluminum plays in Alzheimer’s disease. The aluminum industry argues that, given the murky state of current knowledge, there’s no point in trying to avoid the various forms of the metal, and I’d venture to say the typical doctor’s advice is not to worry about it. But that doesn’t mean aluminum is harmless. It just shows the difficulty of doing research on a disease so poorly understood.
Several teams have tried to determine whether aluminum in drinking water is related to the number of Alzheimer’s cases. (Aluminum is often added to water supplies as a clarifying agent.) The results have been all over the place, for obvious reasons: Alzheimer’s cases aren’t always reported, people move around a lot, they may be exposed to aluminum from other sources, drinking water accounts for only a small portion of total aluminum exposure, and so on.
