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Did Aluminum in Englishman’s Brain Trigger Alzheimer’s?

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Although many researchers have tried, no link between aluminum and Alzheimer’s has ever been proven. Learn of a new finding regarding a job-related case of aluminum exposure. It may just be the first direct link between elevated brain aluminum and Alzheimer’s.


Research at Keele University in Staffordshire has shown for the first time that an individual who was exposed to aluminium at work and died of Alzheimer’s disease had high levels of aluminium in the brain.

While aluminium is a known neurotoxin and occupational exposure to aluminium has been implicated in neurological disease, including Alzheimer’s disease, this finding is believed to be the first record of a direct link between Alzheimer’s disease and elevated brain aluminium following occupational exposure to the metal.

In 2003 a 58-year-old Caucasian male with no previous medical history of note was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Ten years previous to this the man, from the north-east of England, began to work with the preparation of a novel material (DARMATT KM1) used as insulation in the nuclear fuel and space industries. This work exposed him to aluminium sulphate ‘dust’ on a daily basis over 8 years. An ‘ordinary’ dust mask was supplied to protect against inhalation of the materials. Within a short time of starting this work the man complained of headaches, tiredness and mouth ulcers. By 1999 he started to show problems in relation to memory and suffered depression.

Following his death, aged 66, in 2011, a neuropathological examination confirmed advance stage Alzheimer’s disease. There then followed the most comprehensive investigation ever of the aluminium content of the frontal lobe of a single individual with 49 different tissue samples being measured for aluminium.

Professor Chris Exley, of The Birchall Centre, at Keele University, said: “The results showed unequivocally that the frontal lobe contained an average aluminium content which was at least four times higher than might be expected for an age-matched control brain.

“The observation that air-borne aluminium dust was most likely responsible for the elevated levels of aluminium in the brain must then heavily implicate the nose and possibly the lungs as the main routes of entry of aluminium into the body and the brain.

“Overall, these results suggest very strongly that occupational exposure to aluminium contributed significantly to the untimely death of this individual with Alzheimer’s disease.”


The research is published in the Open Access journal Journal of Medical Case Reports (http://www.jmedicalcasereports.com/content/8/1/41/abstract) and further information can be obtained from Professor C Exley, The Birchall Centre, Lennard-Jones Laboratories, Keele University, Staffordshire, ST5 5BG, United Kingdom. Email: c.exley@keele.ac.uk
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Roger
Roger
February 16, 2014 10:04 pm

We grew up with Aluminium Saucepans, and still have an Aluminium Teapot. We used to joke that the best way to clean a saucepan, was to cook some rhubarb, because the acid, took the surface off the saucepan.
Is this the cause of my wife's dementia?
Rodge34

Deane Alban
Deane Alban
Reply to  Roger
February 17, 2014 12:09 am

Cooking acidic foods in aluminum pots it known to leach this mineral. So I'd stick to stainless steel for cooking rhubarb, tomato sauce, etc.

Dennis N. Crouse
Dennis N. Crouse
Reply to  Roger
December 14, 2017 9:23 pm

Not sure how long ago this was posted. Research has reached a tipping point and Aluminum is a causal factor of Alzheimer's. This video was made in 2017 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGmYsFPHguA

Unknown
Unknown
February 17, 2014 8:33 am

This comment has been removed by the author.

Unknown
Unknown
February 17, 2014 8:45 am

he food supplements glucuronolactone and carnosine are scientifically comproved natural and mild heavy metal chelators , as we can find in scientific research articles published in the medical site called PubMed.

Apples , broccoli and oranges are a good sources of glucaric acid (a byproduct of glucuronolactone).
As glucuronolactone , glucaric acid is a peroxinitrite scavenger, heavy metal scavenger, improves the mitochondrial function increasing energy to the neurons, and apples are the better natural source of glucaric acid , and apples maybe csn be useful to prevent against heavy metal accumulation too.

But for patients that have comproved heavy metsl accumulation , the glucuronolactone powder can gives more stable effect to try to eliminate pathogenic heavy metal accumulation.

The natural source of carnosine it is the chicken chest.
Before carnosine be synthesized in pharmaceutical laboratories, researchers used concentrated extracts from cooked chicken chest.
Carnosine is a peroxinitrite scavenger, antiglycating supplement and a natural heavy metal chelator.

As is expected,small doses of the powder of carnosine works better than the chicken chest extract as a heavy metal chelator.

There are dozens of articles in the medical site PubMed about scientific research with carnosine in Alzheimer disease and in others neurodegenerative diseases.

Unknown
Unknown
February 17, 2014 11:25 am

Being that Aluminium can be found in anti-perspirants, shoudl these be avoided also?

Dennis N. Crouse
Dennis N. Crouse
Reply to  Unknown
December 14, 2017 9:25 pm

Yes and here is a link to other things that contain aluminum.

http://prevent-alzheimers-autism-stroke.blogspot.com/

Pete
Pete
February 17, 2014 11:56 am

My personal approach is moderation, as the research is still not conclusive. For example, while I continue to use regular antiperspirant, I also make sure that when I put my sandwich in the toaster oven, there is a sheet of baking paper between my food and the sheet of aluminum foil.

Unknown
Unknown
February 17, 2014 6:46 pm

If they think this, I would look at aluminum cans that people are drinking soda, beer, juices, etc. from on a daily basis. Otherwise my husband has had no great exposure to aluminum

m-mman
m-mman
February 18, 2014 3:10 am

Wow, whatta leap at a conclusion! This aint science, it is just ONE case study for which the author has made fantastic leaps. Millions of people the world over have AD. If true, the author SHOULD have compared and found aluminum in EVERY AD brain. He did not.

OK, this ONE person was exposed to aluminum and developed AD. Did he work totally alone? Was there nobody else who also worked with the aluminum? If aluminum was a/the cause of the AD then the disease SHOULD have happened in everyone who handled or worked around the aluminum material.

The more people that have been exposed to aluminum that do NOT develop specific Alzheimer's disease (not just some un-named dementia) is overwhelming proof that there is NO CONNECTION between AD & aluminum.

If this researcher believes that aluminum is a cause he has A LOT more work to do and his findings should be easily repeatable. WE all want a cure (and a cause) but this aint it!

Dennis N. Crouse
Dennis N. Crouse
December 14, 2017 9:26 pm

The research is now conclusive December 2017, aluminum is a causal factor of Alzheimer's.
https://universityhealthnews.com/daily/memory/aluminum-linked-to-alzheimers-disease/

Edited by:
B. Berger

B. Berger

This site was inspired by my Mom’s autoimmune dementia.

It is a place where we separate out the wheat from the chaffe, the important articles & videos from each week’s river of news. With a new post on Alzheimer’s or dementia appearing on the internet every 7 minutes, the site’s focus on the best information has been a help to many over the past 15 years. Thanks to our many subscribers for your supportive feedback.

The site is dedicated to all those preserving the dignity of the community of people living with dementia.

Peter Berger, Editor

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This site was inspired by my Mom’s autoimmune dementia.

It is a place where we separate out the wheat from the chaffe, the important articles & videos from each week’s river of news. With a new post on Alzheimer’s or dementia appearing on the internet every 7 minutes, the site’s focus on the best information has been a help to many over the past 15 years. Thanks to our many subscribers for your supportive feedback.

The site is dedicated to all those preserving the dignity of the community of people living with dementia.

Peter Berger, Editor

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