Information in the below article has been taken from online journal and research papers to provide an overlook on aluminum and its usage as per Irshaad of Huzurala TUS.
Abstract:
Abundance of aluminum in earth’s crust results in high usage in daily life as well as in the items that can be consumed. This article aims to shed the light on consumption of aluminum; what quantities can be permissible for it to be a non-factor in human health and how can large quantities be infused our diet. The objective is to create awareness to reduce its consumption in daily life.
Aluminum:
Aluminum is the 3rd most abundant element found on earth, and the most abundant metal found on the earth’s crust. Chief ore of aluminum is bauxite, however the metal is found in over 270 minerals.
Presence of Aluminum:
Aluminum is very reactive in its nature, therefore it is not found in its natural state. It is not found in its natural metallic state, but is bound with other elements such as oxygen, silicon and fluorine. It is also found in water normally at less than 5 mg/kg and other foods such as beef, poultry, eggs, dairy products, fruits and vegetables. However most of the aluminum found in these food items is around 1 – 6 mg/kg. Only selective foods such as tea leaves, spinach potatoes etc have high aluminum content. It is also found in small amounts in the air.
Ingestion of Aluminum:
Aluminum is not only ingested by human bodies through raw unprocessed foods and air. But over the time aluminum has been used in various forms as additives and preservatives. Aluminum has been used as an additive for over a century as a firming agent, raising agent, stabilizer and anti-caking agent etc.
Also aluminum can be ingested by the human body through the use of cosmetic and toiletry products such as antiperspirants as well as medicines such as antacids etc.
Harmful Aluminum Content:
Human body is capable of excreting small amounts of aluminum from the body. However if the daily intake of aluminum exceeds the limit which is at 1mg/kg bodyweight per day as established by World Health Organization (WHO), aluminum it can be harmful it is absorbed in the blood streams and accumulates in kidneys, brain tissue and bones, which can lead to many harmful diseases.
The actual amount of aluminum consumed depends largely on the following factors:
- Absorption: How readily a food absorbs and holds on to aluminum.
- Soil: The aluminum content of the soil the food was grown in.
- Packaging: If the food has been packaged and stored in aluminum packaging.
However, as established above, many processed foods contain additives and preservatives as well aluminum content present in medicines.
Also there is a prevalent habit of using aluminum based utensils and aluminum foil. Both are major factors in the increase of aluminum content in food which can be harmful for health.
Aluminum Foil:
Aluminum foil, or tin foil, is a paper-thin, shiny sheet of aluminum metal. It’s made by rolling large slabs of aluminum until they are less than 0.2 mm thick. It’s used industrially for a variety of purposes, including
- packing,
- insulation and
- transportation
At home, people use aluminum foil for
- Food storage
- To cover baking surfaces
- To wrap foods, such as meats, to prevent them from losing moisture while cooking
- To wrap and protect more delicate foods, like vegetables, when grilling them
- It can be used to line grill trays to keep things tidy and for scrubbing pans or grill grates to remove stubborn stains and residue
Leaching of Aluminum into Food using Aluminum Foil:
When food is exposed to aluminum foil while cooking, traces of aluminum separates its self from the foil and leaches onto the food. There are various factors which determine how much aluminum leaches onto the food.
Food: Also determining the amount of aluminum which leaches onto the food is type of food which is being cooked. A study shows that red meat and poultry is cooked over 3 different temperatures of 150, 200 and 250 degrees Celsius at 60 minutes, 40 minutes and 20 minutes respectively. Aluminum content in red meat increased by 89-378% while in poultry the increase was 76-215%
Temperature and Cooking Time: It was observed that least amount of leaching was carried out in the sample which was cooked for 60 minutes on 150 degree Celsius heat, while maximum amount of leaching took place in the sample which was cooked for 20 minutes at 250 degree Celsius heat. The study evidently shows that amount of aluminum which leaches onto the food is dependent on the heats on which the food is cooked.
Food pH Value: One of the bases of leaching aluminum onto food is the pH value of food. If the food is acidic in nature the amount of aluminum leaching increases significantly.An experiment was conducted in which aluminum foil was submerged in boiling water containing two types of solution.
- 250ml of meat extract + 250ml tomato juice + 10g citric acid + 5g of salt.
- 250ml of meat extract + 250ml tomato juice + 20g citric acid + 5g of salt.
Both solutions were boiled in drinking water where the major difference was increase of 10g of citric acid in Solution 2 from Solution 1.
pH value of Solution 1 and 2 was 3.2 and 2.8 respectively. Study showed that by doubling the amount of citric acid 20% aluminum leaching was increased in Solution 2. In Solution 1 16.7mg of aluminum had decreased from the foil while Solution 2 had 20.2mg of Aluminum corrosion.
Spices: In another solution (Solution 3) the testing parameters were kept same, however 3g of spices were added in the Solution. The result was 82.0gm of corrosion of aluminum which was 400% increase over Solution 2.
If the aluminum foil is in a diameter of 40cm, after leaching, Solution 1 will result in intake of 109.4gm of aluminum ingestion in the meal; Solution 2 will result in 132.4gm of aluminum in the meal, while Solution 3 would result in 465.0gm of aluminum intake during the meal. In case of Solution 3, in one single meal, aluminum intake of entire week has been consumed.
Potential Health Risks of Too Much Aluminum:
Dietary aluminum has been suggested as a potential factor in the development of Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s disease is a neurological condition caused by a loss of brain cells.
The cause of Alzheimer’s is unknown, but it is thought to be due to a combination of genetic and environmental factors, which can damage the brain over time .High levels of aluminum have been found in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s.
It is possible that exposure to very high levels of dietary aluminum may contribute to the development of brain diseases like Alzheimer’s.
It’s impossible to completely remove aluminum from our diet, but we can work to minimize it.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have agreed that levels below 2 mg per 2.2 pounds (1 kg) body weight per week are unlikely to cause health problems.
The European Food Safety Authority uses a more conservative estimate of 1 mg per 2.2 pounds (1 kg) body weight per week.
Here are some steps you can take to minimize unnecessary exposure to aluminum when cooking:
- Avoid high-heat cooking: Cook our foods at lower temperatures when possible.
- Don’t Use Aluminum foil: Reduce our use of aluminum foil for cooking, especially if cooking with acidic foods, like tomatoes or lemons.
- Use non-aluminum utensils: Use non-aluminum utensils to cook our food, such as Copper, glass or porcelain dishes and utensils.
Additionally, as commercially processed foods can be packaged in aluminum or contain food additives that contain it, they may have higher levels of aluminum than their homemade equivalents.
Thus, eating mostly home-cooked foods and reducing your intake of commercially processed foods may help to reduce your aluminum intake.
Health risks:
- Alzheimer’s
- Aluminum intake can be dangerous to bone, brain, muscle and other tissues.
- Aluminum interferes with the digestion of calcium, phosphorus, and fluoride, and can even result in osteoporosis. It damages the liver, and impairs the kidneys. It is linked to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinsons. It leads to colic, sleep disturbance, anemia, and speech problems.
- Male Infertility
A recent study found that aluminum may be responsible for the rise in male infertility. After analyzing sperm samples from more than 60 participants, the researchers confirmed that their semen did contain aluminum. The more aluminum the sample contained the lower the sperm count was. This could explain why male infertility has skyrocketed over the last few years.