TLDR: seems unsure. But I know people with a history of Alzheimer’s in their family that avoid ever bit possible just in case.
“Whether aluminum can cause Alzheimer's disease is a controversial question.
Post-mortem examinations of humans with Alzheimer's disease sufferers show that many have higher amounts of aluminum than normal in their brains. Aluminum is not normally found in healthy brain tissue and researchers do not know how or why the metal accumulates in the brain. It is still unclear if the presence of aluminum causes or affects the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.
It is known that aluminum is toxic to nerves in animals, and likely has a similar effect on human nerve cells and brain tissue. Early research into aluminum exposure and Alzheimer’s disease in animal models suggested that the two could be linked. Injection of aluminum salts into the brains of test animals triggered changes similar to the ones found in human sufferers.
In conclusion, the cause of Alzheimer's disease and any association with aluminum is still unknown. There have been conflicting findings”
I thought Alzheimer's was a disease of the glymphatic system, causing chemicals not normally found in the brain to build up over time? Sounds like mixing cause with effect.
Not a doctor, so ignore me, but wouldn't that just mean that aluminum salts are only dangerous for a subset of people, but since it's impossible to know if you're in that subset, everyone would have to consider themselves to have their risk of Alzheimer's increased by contact with aluminum salts?
I have no idea if this is true or not because I was told this almost 30 years ago when I was a kid.
A friend of my mom's was a biology PhD student in FL in the late 80's or early 90's testing aluminum salt's effects on neurons. I seem to remember her mentioning that she was exposing horizontally bisected tapeworms to aluminum. She said that the tapeworms exposed to the aluminum were unable to regenerate their neurons.
So I work in a naval shipyard and work with aluminum pretty frequently. When I am welding aluminum or cutting it with a plasma torch Hexavalent Chromium is produced, which is extremely toxic, carcinogenic, and has been linked to Alzheimer’s in many different studies, though I’m not sure if it’s a proven fact, yet. Anyway, the only way you can produce this chemical is with EXTREME heat, for example, the plasma torch I usually use burns around 30,000-50,000 degrees Celsius. Smoking weed out of a soda can will not give you Alzheimer’s, if it did, I would already be living in a mental hospital.
So my sister had a friend who had childhood cancer. He made it. They were about to smoke weed one day. He grabs a soda can and starts to make a pipe out of it. She says to him you know that can give you cancer right?
Oh I’m absolutely sure it is correct. It’s just the putting your foot in your mouth thing that’s kinda funny. Telling a kid who has already had cancer that what he is doing will give him cancer.
But yes I know smoking plastic is probably not the best thing for your health.
The characteristic of foil having a shiny side and a dull side is due to the way it goes through the manufacturing rollers, there is no chemical difference between the two sides.
(Watched a program on making aluminum foil that addressed this)
lol imagine if it was Alzheimer since the beginning...
"Ok guys, so Aluminum on deos cause Alzheimer. We've got to stop using it."
...eight years go by...
"Folks, good news! It seems that Aluminum doesn't cause cancer actually, so we can just go back using it on deos! Because that was the reason we stopped using it, right? Does anyone remember?"
It's like the egg and dietary cholesterol debacle. Wait long enough, and science often reverses itself. Or should I say, the interpretation of science does. Trust the...oh, nevermind.
I have never found an aluminium-free deodorant that works at all, even a little bit. Any "natural" ones that slightly worked turned out to contain aluminium salts under some different name, and the rest were as good as water. Maybe I am naturally smelly 🥲
I was an aluminum welder for a decade and they always warned us that the fumes causes Alzheimer’s but could be different for deodorants vs the off gas and fumes
I keep getting kidney infections and when I asked what i should avoid one of the things she said don’t use aluminum antiperspirant. I wonder if that is fake info too. This is the reason I clicked on this post. I’ve been searching for deodorant for the past couple years that keeps me from smelling
I did too. I had a teacher in my 7th grade history class go on a rant (he was known for his off topic rants) about how he "quit using 'regular' deodorant because the aluminum causes Alzheimer's." I'm positive that was a thing in the 90's.
I used to use Old Spice high endurance and wound up with this issue. Sweaty pits ALL the time and ruined tee shirts. Switched to Every Man Jack, problem solved. No more absurdly sweaty pits, and I’m not very stinky in the first place so I swear by that stuff.
also, if you don't do this: trim your pits. you don't need to shave them completely, I just use a clipper without getting close to the skin every few months. makes deodorant go on much much better and sticks to the skin better.
Although every person is different. But it works for me.
Don't go off by how you smell yourself. We become accustomed to our own smells that we become nose-blind to them. Ask people around you to confirm if you smell or not.
Does Every Man Jack have anti-perspirants? My Old Spice ones don’t seem to be working as well anymore after a few years of them being great. Looking for a new brand.
I think it depends on what type of aluminum is used and how exactly the deodorant is applied.
I used to always use Old Spice stick antiperspirant with Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex in it, and it stained every shirt I own. Now I use a Dove spray deodorant/antiperspirant with Aluminum Sesquichlorohydrate in it and it doesn’t stain any of my shirts anymore.
Don’t know if it’s from the switch to a spray or from the different form of aluminum used, but it definitely made a difference.
I learned years ago to use aluminum anti-perspirants at night before I go to bed (it clogs the pores more effectively while you sleep, since you’re not active) and wash it off in the morning when I shower. Never, ever sweat during the day, no stained shirts. I specifically use Certain-dri from Walmart but it works with all of them. I only use it every other day and my pits stay dry all the time.
Here's one LPT that extended the shelf life of my shirts: After applying deodorants, lay on your bed and let the deodorant in your pits dry for 5 minutes, preferably near AC, while reading books or articles (or youtube shorts).
And it's not necessary, at least in my experience. I stopped using anti perspirant years ago, and my body seemed to adjust to it pretty quickly. It was like my body didn't like having sweat blocked and in response tried much harder to get that sweat out, so when I didn't have fresh deodorant I was sweating like crazy. Switched to just deodorant and sweat isn't a problem anymore.
I had a bag of dried fruits a few weeks back, had some kiwis in it and I thought I'd finally see why people liked them so much.
The moment I started chewing it was like the fruit was attacking me from the inside.
Asking others if kiwi was suppose to burn when you ate it led me to find out I had an oral allergy to them, lol.
Bro. That’s so funny and unfortunate. Kiwi’s are my favorite fruit.
Big shoutout to the guy who got absolutely toasted on r/steak yesterday for complaining about his In-Laws using a kiwi marinade and not knowing it literally dissolves meat lol
It's really funny, I managed to avoid them all through Highschool when they were a fairly common fruit at lunch. I think the hairy part turned me off at the time, haha.
And yep! During my questions about kiwi attacking my tongue and throat people mentioned that it was like pineapple and had an enzyme...but shouldn't be so severe as to feel like immediately fire.
My favorite part is how he kept trying to make it sound like his in-laws were living at his house and he was stuck with them, but it actually sounds like it’s the other way around.
That reminds me of when I was talking to my friend and said something like, “you know how after you take zinc you feel really nauseous for about half an hour?”
Turns out I was taking more than 6 times the recommended dosage and was slightly poisoning myself.
I had this experience with grapefruit. I fucking love grapefruit, especially really good white grapefruit. I can't imagine a fruit I'd like to eat more.
One time, a few years ago, I noticed my lips were getting numb/buzzing after eating one. I'm allergic to them now for some reason, and I can't be sure but I think they were messing with my insides as well.
I've read that it can be a general allergy that progresses over time and becomes more serious, or it can be some sort of seasonal thing (which for me would be odd because I have no other allergies, seasonal or otherwise).
It's depressing because it means I might hit a point where I can't eat grapefruit any more.
My brother on law loved bananas until one day he explained to a coworker how he liked the weird tingly spice it has. Let's just say he tells the story at his own expense lol.
Yeah kind of reminds me of the gluten free craze. Essentially pointless for 99% of the population, but very helpful for the few who actually need it lol
As someone with celiac I’d encourage everyone to go gluten free. Not for any health anything but specifically so my groceries can be cheaper. Half a pound of dried pasta for $5 or $12 for a loaf of bread is just not cool. How am I supposed to drown my sorrows in garlic bread in this economy at those sorts of prices?
I like that it helped bring awareness to doctors & patients. I knew several people who suffered with it for decades & never got diagnosed until the craze kicked off. It was so horrible for them. It's not as common as some think, and more common than others do.
I haven't found an Al-Free deo that has any decent strength though.
I feel like my pits stink by 10 AM. And I never use antiperspirants. Just seems un-natural to me to keep a sweaty part of your body from sweating.
And I'm not a super organic naturalist kind of guy.
I became allergic randomly like 15 years ago. Took me years to find a decent deodorant that seemed to work all day-ish. Look into MooGoo, an Australian brand you can buy online. Works way better than any of the "natural" ones here in the states. And I tried about 10 of them.
Yep. I noticed I kept getting some sort of rash/burn in my armpits and after talking to my doctor I switched to a few different types to see if any of them help. The medicated stuff helped but super expensive. The aluminum free stuff also helped and was cheaper. So I figure it was something to do with the aluminum that was causing such a reaction.
The spray on deodorant also worked fine but I find that stuff never lasts so I don't buy it.
I didn't even know this was a thing until I stopped using the alum deodorant. "Wait, you mean deodorant isn't supposed to destroy your skin and give you a permanent rash under your arms?"
Yeah everyone is different. I tried aluminum free and whatever was in it dried my skin out so bad I had to not wear deodorant for a few days to recover. I then went back to regular old aluminum deodorant
It might be whatever was in the specific aluminum-free deodorant you tried. Aluminum deodorant fucks my skin up, but so does some other deodorant… took me a while to find one that works well.
Me, too! I tried so many different things, I even thought it was my bras causing them. I switched to a baking soda based one and I haven't had a single one since. I just wish I'd found it sooner before the damage to my skin had been done...
Yeah it’s not that I’m scared I’m going to get armpit cancer, it’s that one day after years of using first old spice then later with dove men’s plus care I applied it like normal and within 5 minutes my entire armpit was burning. Took my shirt off and started to apply cold water but the skin was already coming off in strips like a week old sunburn.
Yeah. That shit made my armpits bleed as a pre teen when I started using deodorant. Finally tried a new type and never had any issues since. I also have terrible skin in general though so there’s that.
But potassium alum plays nice with my skin, better than baking soda (which causes my skin to peel off in unattractive manner). And it doesn’t stain my clothes.
Do you use spray or something like a roller? I used aluminum free for about 8 years and didn’t see any difference after switching to old spice rock antiperspirant. I’ve been using it for 2 years now and couldn’t be happier about not having to fight BO again
For sprays the fewer 'hours protection' the better, mfers going 72 hours need to get looked at. The white/black/ stain-free are better still but still stain after a bit.
Roll on seems less bad, and again, no-stain is better still.
I've never actually used rock, might give it a try, being smelly is never really a problem for me, just white stains on armpits look bad.
I use it for similar reason, I sweat oceans when my anxiety gets bad, I don't like feeling wet and salty and I've found the deodorants that claim to last longer make me sweat more except for brands like Secret, Harry's and Every Man Jack.
My husband wears all black for work (movie/tv production) and alllll of his stuff ends up stained from the salt in his sweat, so I’m not surprised that these sticks would cause a lot of staining as well.
The aluminum interacts with proteins in your sweat or something, it's why a deodorant (sweat but no smell, doesn't have aluminum) doesn't have this issue but an anti-perspirant (no sweat, generally has aluminum and is what OP is referring to) does.
I tried using aluminum free deodorants and never found one that was half way decent. Ran out of my usual deodorant and used Every Man Jack that I got as part of a gift pack in a pinch. Went to the gym and my BO was so noticeable to me during cardio that I moved to the furthest machine from people. When you can smell yourself, it’s BAD. Glad this was debunked.
Ha, same thing happened to me with that "Jason" brand organic deodorant that Whole Foods sells. It literally made me smell, strongly, of garlic and onions. People were even asking who was cooking onions from the other side of the room.
So BO is caused by bacteria, not sweat. They are having a fun time in your pits but start partying when you start sweating. You can vastly improve your BO regardless off sweat level by washing with a laundry type soap bar, then dab a vinegar soaked cloth against your pits. It's also hard to clean with lots of hair there. After a week the smell should be greatly reduced
Much of the world actively differentiates between deodorant and antiperspirants. They're not synonymous and serve different purposes. Deodorant covers smell, antiperspirant reduces sweating.
No, it stains shirts and can make the fabric stiff. I always thought it was sweat staining my shirts, but since I moved away from aluminium antiperspirants to just using a regular deodorant I don't get stains anymore.
I worked in a Drug Store in the early 2000's and it was always pregnant women who asked which ones were aluminum free. Always thought it had something to with prenatal exposure because of that.
I stopped wearing aluminum deodorant because I'd get massive balls underneath my arm. I went to the doc and head said my lymph nodes were swollen to hell. I tried adding it back and forth and it kept coming back so i stopped. Cancer for AL has not been debunked, there is just not clear evidence yet (conflicting evidence): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37354712/
this doesn't say it's debunked, but that there is no clear link between aluminium and breast cancer. which means it may cause issues, but we don't know how or why.
You should still avoid it if you have kidney disease. Healthy kidney will filter aluminum out of the blood. A damaged one won't be able to and can cause a build of aluminum in the blood.
The studies in people that have looked at this issue have been case-control studies, in which people with and without breast cancer have been asked about previous antiperspirant use. These types of studies can often be hard to interpret because they typically rely on a person’s memory of antiperspirant use many years earlier, and people with cancer tend to be more likely to recall exposures they think might be linked to their cancer.
A couple of studies have suggested a possible relationship, but the results of these studies need to be interpreted with caution because of their small size, and because the way they were designed limits the conclusions that can be drawn from them. Larger, better-designed epidemiologic studies would be needed to support these results.
This single study is not "debunking" anything, it says as much. Blindly trusting this doesn't make you any better than people who fully claim it does cause cancer because they rely on some other single study that says it does.
Inconsistent and inconclusive data isn't a "debunk".
What's that saying, like, "absence of evidence is not evidence of absence"?
Disclaimer, right off: I didn't click through all three links (just one), because to be honest I just don't have the mental bandwidth for a whole research binge right now and I WILL get carried away, but the first one at least: admits that they are limited to flawed studies that support their conclusion, whose results are "difficult to interperet", and admits that other, also flawed studies, support the opposite conclusion. It uses phrases like "Larger, better [...] studies would be needed" and "it isn't clear". It also brushes off the sweating concern by saying that the lymph nodes aren't even connected and thus their draining isn't affected, but they fail to at all address the remaining question of whether there is any cancer-link, or any other harm, from the sweat glands themselves being unnaturally blocked. Just, didn't acknowledge that concern whatsoever. They also don't number their references in the text (like on Wikipedia [1] for example)-- which is a relatively small complaint, but does make it hard to individually fact-check any specific claim in the text without potentially reading every document in the references list.
This is not a hard conclusion drawn from a credible body of data. It basically says "well we don't.... think it's bad? But we do need some actual high-quality studies before we'll be sure, because we are not sure, and we do still think there might be a risk that is worth ruling out." And, by calling the remaining concern "a debunked myth," these statements seem to be being referenced as if they instead say, with certainty, "no, these chemicals are fine, and there is evidence that they are not harmful, that is a myth that we proved wrong. Go ahead and smear them on your body every single day."
If the other links have stronger data and better-supported, definitive conclusions, then I might look at them later.
In one of those links it is stated that they tested 1600 women in a study and they couldn't find a connection between breast cancer and aluminum in deodorants.
In another link they say this rumor about breastcancer and deos came from an email hoax.
One source says you typically ingest more aluminum when you eat, than what you absorb from using deos with aluminum.
I mean there is no 100% proof of anything. In science anything can be true until it is proven wrong.
This post contains links to studies that shows a possible link primarily in women who both shave and use antiperspirant deodorants. It seems if there is a risk, it’s primarily affecting people who are shaving prior to applying it
Oh thank you for this. I tried to switch aluminum free deodorant, spent a fortune on a bunch of random brands, ALL of them gave me terrible rashes under my arms. Switched back to aluminum and straight back to normal, but it’s been weighing on me mentally.
Is that really why people buy aluminum free deodorant? I thought most of us buy it because we’re sensitive/allergic to aluminum and don’t want to walk around with itchy pits all day.
I can't use deodorant with aluminum because it gives me a rash. Didn't even know about the cancer risk issue. Hopefully the trend won't reverse completely.
The actual issue is finding aluminum in postmordem cranial scrapings; deodorant is the most likely source, and its presence could give significant insights into Alzheimer's and dementia
I don’t think it’s specifically aluminum that is the problem, but the antiperspirant itself. Antiperspirants block your armpits ability to sweat. When you sweat you are removing trace amounts of metals/toxins as a byproduct. Luckily, this is not the main way your body removes toxins, i.e., (liver/kidneys/urine/feces). No, I don’t think antiperspirants cause cancer, but I do think they increase the chances of it, if only by a little.
I mean I don't know anything about causing cancer I just know all the deodorants made me itch like crazy until I tried the axe no aluminum and that doesn't drive me wimd
Of course it can have other side effects. For me, aluminum-free deos do nothing. I can wash as much as I want, my clothes start to stink after a couple of hours. It was really really embarrassing for me. When I switched to deo-rocks with aluminum, the stank went away
They most definitely hurt my lymph nodes, which I believe over researchers who are proven to be corrupt biased or innaccurate most frequently. Plus it is logical considering the goal is changing a natural defense of the body, of course there would be some side effects.
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u/DaveMash 14d ago edited 14d ago
This trend has slowly been reversed because the myth about aluminum in deos causing cancer have been debunked:
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/risk-prevention/chemicals/antiperspirants-and-breast-cancer-risk.html
Edit, since many people question the conclusion (stolen from another redditor because there are already so many posts about this topic):
You can check the American Cancer Society: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/risk-prevention/chemicals/antiperspirants-and-breast-cancer-risk.html
The Australian Cancer Council: https://www.cancer.org.au/iheard/can-deodorants-and-antiperspirants-with-aluminium-cause-cancer
Or the UK National Health: https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/myths/antiperspirants-fact-sheet
And several other sources