Aluminium is a reactive metal, so it can react with acidic foods and leach into food - so don't cook or store tomato and vinegar based foods in aluminium. Also, pitted or worn aluminium can release metal particles (but so can steel and iron pots.)Hillbilly wrote:Sigg are good, we use their stuff for hills but only the bottles - however yer, aluminium - isn't that worse? (alzheimers etc)
Having said that, most alumnium containers used for food are now made from anodised aluminium. Anodising thickens and toughens the naturally occurring oxides on the surface of a metal, protecting the metal.
Hard anodised metal is the second hardest substance after diamonds. However, aluminium cookware and storage containers are batch anodised, which is still strong but is more porous and allows bright colourings to be used (like Sigg bottles and boxes).
So modern aluminium cookware is quite safe provided it's looked after and not worn or chipped. (The US FDA has researched it extensively.)
You get far more aluminium by ingesting antacid tablets. I can't remember the exact figures, but taking a couple of antacid tablets would see you take in about 300% more aluminium than cooking with an aluminium saucepan! I might do a google later and check.
Must go - school bus time!
Stonehead
PS Some non-stick coatings are another matter, so stick with cast iron, stainless steel and anodised aluminium.
