Q:

WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH ALUMINUM, EXACTLY? SOME RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT WEARING AN ANTIPERSPIRANT THAT CONTAINS ALUMINUM COULD BE LINKED TO CANCER.

THE DOCTOR’S TAKE According to Dr. Ruth Heisey, chief of family and community medicine at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto, antiperspirants with aluminum do not increase the risk of breast cancer. “We tell people not to wear it on the day of their mammograms only because the metal can show up in the X-ray picture and make it more difficult to interpret,” she says. She also points to an email-propagated rumour that stemmed from “a poorly designed, inconclusive study” as the root of some of the fear associated with using products that contain aluminum. “You would not believe how many high-risk women come in to see me sweating and apologizing for not wearing deodorant. They leave relieved...and better informed.”