Re: Cooking witgh slide mounts, Recipes by Jon Golden

[P3D John W Roberts <roberts@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>Date: Wed, 4 Dec 1996 10:37:14 -0600
>From: P3D Michael Kersenbrock <michaelk@xxxxxxxxxxx>
>Subject: Re: Cooking witgh slide mounts, Recipes by Jon Golden

>Please advise Martha that this probably isn't recommended.  The metal
>mounts usually are bare aluminum and there may be a problem especially
>with anything acidic like artichoke leaves.  There may be excessive
>aluminum in the results.

Of course, people have been cooking in aluminum cookware and even cooking food
wrapped in aluminum foil, for a number of decades. It's possible that the
cookware is typically anodized, but probably not the foil.

Reportedly highly acidic foods stored in aluminum foil for a long time will 
get some aluminum *oxide* in them, but the oxide is extremely unreactive. CRC 
says it's "very slightly soluble" in acid - but I don't think anybody's going 
to have the patience to cook enough artichoke leaves in a slide projector to 
have much of a problem with that.

There have been studies possible links between aluminum and Alzheimer's,
but I'm not aware of any solid indication to date that exposure to any
particular aluminum compound would increase one's chance of getting it.
It might be worthwhile to be a little cautious while studies are underway,
but I don't think it's a risk on the order of eating random plants found in
the woods, cutting yourself with a piece of beryllium, deliberately inhaling
plutonium oxide, etc. :-) Anyway, aluminum is extremely common in our
environment, and fairly common in our food whether we cook in aluminum pans
or not.

John R


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