Aluminum Cookware Hazards

• Lightweight, versatile and convenient describes aluminum cookware, but it's the soft, pliable and reactive nature of this metal that raises concerns about using aluminum cookware. Aluminum naturally occurs in nature and is the most abundant metal on Earth, and in low amounts, aluminum poses no harm to the healthy functioning body. But according to Health Canada, "The longer food is cooked or stored in aluminum, the greater the amount that gets into food." Knowing how to properly use aluminum cookware will prevent you from being affected by its hazards.

The "Boil Dry" Effect

• Leaving an empty pot on a burner set to high temperatures for a prolonged period of time is a fire hazard for any pot, especially an aluminum one. Although the element aluminum (Al) has a melting point of 1,218 degrees Fahrenheit, Aluminum pots undergo a "boil dry" effect when heated for a long time, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

  The "boil dry" effect causes the solid aluminum to become a molten liquid that not only burns upon contact, but can ignite a fire. To prevent this problem from happening, do not preheat your aluminum pots until you are ready to use them, and reserve your high-temperature cooking for more durable pots, such as enamel-coated cast iron or stainless steel pots.

Aluminum Leaching

• Aluminum pots are not the best choice for multipurpose food cooking. Some foods, because of their acidic properties, will actually react with the aluminum, transforming it from a solid to a soluble state. In soluble form, the aluminum readily mixes into the food, and the food then gains a higher aluminum content than if it were prepared in another pot. Reserve your sauces and acidic food preparations for your non-aluminum cookware.

Health Concerns

• High levels of serum aluminum in the body can result in aluminum toxicity from using aluminum cookware. Dr. Gary Farr of BecomeHealthyNow.com states in "The Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis -- Why Heavy Metals are a Hazard to Your Health," that aluminum from many sources, including cookware, affects the bones, kidneys, brain and stomach, resulting in numerous health conditions, including dementia, gastroenteritis and liver dysfunction.

  Aluminum toxicity can overload the kidneys, especially in patients dealing with kidney disease. People suffering from Alzheimer's disease have a higher concentration of aluminum deposits in their brains, but it is inconclusive if this is the cause of the disease or if the brain merely attracts more aluminum in the face of the disease.

  Since aluminum is naturally found in our bodies, a concern with using aluminum cookware is whether consuming foods prepared in them increases aluminum levels in the body beyond what it can naturally handle.

  Carla Helfferich, Alaska Science Forum of the University of Alaska Fairbanks' Geophysical Institute, states in the article, "A Minimum of Aluminum," that "Because aluminum can replace the calcium in calcium phosphate, the chief structural material of bones, a buildup of this metal can cause bone disease." Helfferich further adds, "Since aluminum compounds are chemically similar to some iron compounds, medical researchers think that aluminum could interfere in blood-building processes. Anemia is thus a reasonable outcome of too much aluminum in the system."