For some time aluminum has been linked with this terminal condition. Yet try finding metal cookware these days with no aluminum layer. We often advise checking the list of ingredients on favorite products to be sure they don't include aluminum, e.g. underarm deodorants and table salt (which also includes sugar), just to name a couple used daily. Colloidal minerals may also include aluminum. This metal is considered unsafe in the body at any level, as is mercury. 

Alexander Schauss, PhD, as Director of Life Science Division, American Institute For Biosocial Research, Inc. and who served on National Institute of Health (NIH) advisory committees, advises that "To date, the only element among minerals that seems to protect the brain from excess levels of aluminum is magnesium."

Necessary for assimilation and preventing loss of calcium and potassium, a chronic deficiency of magnesium may lead to kidney disease, kidney stones, muscle cramps, CVD, heart attack, irritability, impaired protein metabolism, premature wrinkling, osteoporosis, diabetes, CFS, PMS, hypertension, and marked depression.

Excess intake of calcium creates a ratio imbalance of ca:mg. The blood thinner, warfarin, decreases the bioavailability of magnesium which in turn, decreases the effect of the drug. This mineral has been shown to prevent clotting. In these cases or with use of laxatives and antacids, one should consult a qualified physician before supplementing.

 

Good food sources of magnesium are dark green leafy vegetables (kale, watercress, endive, chard, beet tops), sesame seeds, apricots, sprouted whole grains, brewer's yeast, and nuts.

The Rush and Rotterdam studies of Alzheimer's and antioxidant intake both found that consuming foods high in vitamins C and E is associated with lower risk of Alzheimer's Disease, however, taking isolated, fractionated vitamins was not. (De Cava, JA, Nutrition News and Views For Health Professionals, Vol. 7, No. 1, Jan./Feb. 2003)