Can antiperspirants cause kidney disease?
Concerns about antiperspirants and kidney disease were first raised many years ago, when dialysis patients were given a drug called aluminum hydroxide to help control high phosphorus levels in their blood. Because their kidneys weren't functioning properly, their bodies couldn't remove the aluminum fast enough, and it began accumulating. Scientists noticed that dialysis patients who had these high aluminum levels were more likely to develop dementia. Aluminum accumulation in the body and blood also produced a type of bone disease known as adynamic bone disease.
As a result, the FDA requires antiperspirant labels to carry a warning that reads, "Ask a doctor before use if you have kidney disease." Yet this warning is only meant for people whose kidneys are functioning at 30% or less (also known as Stage 4 or 5 chronic kidney disease – CKD).
In reality, it's almost impossible to absorb enough aluminum through the skin to harm the kidneys. "Unless you eat your stick or spray it into your mouth, your body can't absorb that much aluminum," says nephrologist Leslie Spry, MD, FACP, spokesperson for the National Kidney Foundation.
