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Cancer risk Aluminum deodorants increase the risk of breast cancer
That deodorants with aluminum can be dangerous has been known for some time. Swiss researchers have now provided further evidence for the relationship between such deodorants and the development of breast cancer.
Health risks from aluminum in deodorants
Years ago, experts pointed to health risks from aluminum in deodorants. For example, aluminum-containing cosmetics are suspected of increasing the risk of diseases such as cancer and dementia because of the metal they contain. According to the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), however, this danger has not been scientifically proven. However, Swiss scientists have come a step further and have provided evidence for the relationship between aluminum deodorants and the development of breast cancer.
Swiss researchers have provided further evidence for the connection between deodorants with aluminum and the development of breast cancer. (Image: Voyagerix / fotolia.com) Increase in breast cancer cases in industrialized countries
As the researchers at the Clinique des Grangettes in Geneva wrote in a statement, the increase in breast cancer cases in the industrialized countries, which was noted in recent decades, remains largely unexplained. While environmental factors are believed to contribute significantly to the development of human cancer, no environmental substance has yet been clearly identified as the cause of this "epidemic".
Aluminum salts can penetrate the skin cover
Because breast cancer predominantly forms in the outer areas of the mammary gland, ie near the armpit, the potential harmfulness of deodorants has been under discussion for a long time. Many deodorants contain high levels of aluminum salts, which have been shown to penetrate the dermal layer. They can also accumulate in the mammary gland.
The alleged harmlessness of aluminum salts to human health has so far hardly been questioned scientifically. The research team around Dr. Stefano Mandriota and dr. André-Pascal Sappino from the clinic's oncology center has now succeeded in demonstrating that breast cells from cultures with aluminum concentrations that correspond to the concentrations measured in the human mammary gland can cause tumors with very aggressive behavior in the animal - i. Cancer that forms numerous metastases.
Use of aluminum reminiscent of asbestos
The study, published in the International Journal of Cancer, also showed that aluminum salts cause an accumulation of mutations in the genome of the affected cells, a known feature of cancer cells.
According to the scientists, further studies are now needed "to better understand the role of aluminum cells in the development of breast cancer". The new findings, however, represent another significant piece of evidence against this exogenous substance and should cause health authorities to restrict their use in the cosmetics industry.
The researchers pointed out that "the history of the use of aluminum salts is reminiscent of the dramatic case of asbestos". The communication states: "For decades, the devastating effects of this low-cost substance with attractive properties for industry have not been determined by industry's standard toxicological screening tests." (Ad)