Study: Alzheimer's Again Tied to Aluminum in Drinking Water

Alzheimer's disease appears to be more prevalent in areas where drinking water has high concentrations of aluminum, according to an Italian study presented recently at the annual meeting of the Experimental Biology meeting.

Although the finding provides more support for the theory that exposure to aluminum increases the risk of Alzheimer's disease, the researchers cautioned that this risk is not associated with aluminum cookware, whose molecular makeup is different than the aluminum occurring in drinking water.

Specifically, Dr. Paolo Prolo, of the University of California at Los Angeles, and his colleagues found that regions of northwest Italy that had the highest concentrations of aluminum in drinking water also had higher incidences of Alzheimer's disease.

The researchers then tested whether the type of aluminum found in the drinking water had any effects on human cells. They found that the aluminum, even at low quantities, killed some of the cells and even more cells when combined with beta-amyloid, a protein linked to the development of Alzheimer's disease.

Other sources: Experimental Biology