Day 2 - Aluminum information

Day 2 without antiperspirant is no different that normal. Carol purchased Tom's Deodorant for me yesterday. It smells like a bar of soap, not too bad. I did not use any today, as I have decided that I would let my skin purge itself of anything up under there for a few days.

While searching for more information today I found this from the American Association for Kidney Patients:
"In 2003, the FDA issued a final rule establishing conditions that antiperspirants, which often contain aluminum, were safe and not misbranded. However, they have upheld the rule that all aluminum-containing antiperspirants carry a warning of potential hazards and a reminder to keep this product out of reach of children. Patients with reduced renal function, as well as children because they have immature renal function, are at higher risk. Patients are warned to “ask a doctor before use if you have kidney disease.”

I find this interesting that the FDA would say that they are safe but lets cover manufacturers and have them put a warning label on their product. This does not make logical sense to me. Why would you continue to warn people of something that is safe?

So am I reading this right? Children or teens that have immature kidney function would they be at risk for having used this product?

On Sure's website
Q: Can Anti-Perspirant cause kidney disease?
A: No. Anti-perspirants will not cause kidney disease. (seems to me to be very infatic)

Q: Are Antiperspirants safe to use if I have kidney disease?
A: The FDA considers antiperspirants completely safe and effective. Otherwise, they would not allow them to be marketed. (Sure the FDA has always made sure products were safe before allowing them to be marketed to the public) Aluminum is removed from the body primarily by the kidneys. Thus, people with kidney disease may not remove aluminum as effectively. The FDA issued a ruling that requires all U.S. antiperspirants to carry a warning statement to make consumers aware that exposure to aluminum from antiperspirants might need to be discussed with their doctor. If you have kidney disease, we suggest that you consult with your doctor about the warning statement. For perspective, aluminum is from the food and water we consume and the air we breathe. Daily aluminum intake from food and water is thought to be much greater than exposure from daily use of antiperspirants or other beauty care products.

Let's take a closer look at their argument about aluminum.

There is aluminum in the air, water, and in our food?
Now Iron is a component that makes up our red blood cells, oxygen, carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen. It's a main ingredient of our being. But aluminum? Our gastrointestinal tracts are nearly impermeable to it. On the internet, my source of all information as of now, there are multiple sites in regards to Aluminum being poisonous.

The air we breathe is made up of:
Nitrogen -- N₂ -- 78.084%
Oxygen -- O₂ -- 20.9476%
Argon -- Ar -- 0.934%
Carbon Dioxide -- CO₂ -- 0.0314%
The rest are traces of gases, but aluminum is definitely not in the air.

A Dr. Elson Haas has an article in the Organic Spa magazine and states "Regular use of aluminum-containing deodorants may contribute to the clogging of underarm lymphatics and then to breast problems such as cystic disease."

The National Expositor states " Injecting aluminum into the brains of sheep was reported in 1965 to result in changes in the brain that showed a “striking resemblance” to Alzheimer's disease (AD) in people. In 1973, brains of AD patients were found to contain more aluminum than people dying without this disease. About the same time, kidney patients on dialysis were found to suffer, sometimes fatal, brain damage (encephalopathy) from aluminum in their antacids. More than 100 toxic actions of aluminum have been identified and many are damaging to the human brain."

Since I live in the city of Plano, I checked their latest available water report that I found on their website. http://pdf.plano.gov/water/water08.pdf It shows no where that Aluminum is in our water source. Maybe questions to a water supply professional could verify if Aluminum is something they filter out.

The case against using aluminum is beginning to take some shape.