ahh just found this.

"From the earliest days of food regulation, the use of alum (aluminum sulphate) in foods has been condemned. It is universally acknowledged as a poison in all countries. If the Bureau of Chemistry had been permitted to enforce the law ... no food product in the country would have any trace of ... any aluminum or saccarin. No soft drink would contain caffeine or hebromin; no bleached flour would be in interstate commerce. Our food and drugs would be wholly without adulteration ... and the health of our people would be vastly improved and their life greatly extended."

From History of crime against the Food Laws (1929) by Dr. Wiley, the prime mover behind the original Pure Food Law and Director of the FDA. He resigned in disgust in 1912 over exceptions granted to the law and lack of enforcement.

Aluminum has been exempted from tesitng for safety by the FDA under a convoluted logic wherein it is classified as GRAS. (Generally Regarded As Safe.) It has never been tested by the FDA on its safety and there are NO restrictions whatever on the amount or use of aluminum.

There are over 2000 references in the National Library of Medicine on adverse effects of alumium. The following were extracted to provide a small sample of the range of toxicity of aluminum.
Mirno Sctlnd Reviewed by Mirno Sctlnd on . aluminum stem ok, i've been looking for a better stem for my bong because right now i have a copper one and ive heard that copper is harmful. So i found a rod from a Halex Foosball tabel we were throwing out and i'm not sure if it's aluminum or steel. does anyne know if aluminum is harmful or not? Rating: 5