Fluoride
Is fluoride in our water supply beneficial to our health?
The Issue
In 1951, the United States began to add fluoride to the public water supply, and by 2006, 61.9% of the US population was receiving fluoridated water. Fluoride, an ion of the element fluorine, has been thought to improve dental hygiene by promoting tooth remineralization, reducing bacterial acid production, and hardening teeth. However, recent research disputes these claims, arguing fluoridated water causes fluorosis, and subsequently tooth decay, and dangerously impacts other parts of the body.
— Aya Abitbul, Nia Creator
Most Popular Question
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This Question: 5The addition of fluoride to our water supply is beneficial to our health because:Top Support Story Added By Users'Your fluoridation exposure at birth is affecting your tooth loss in your 40s and 50s, regardless of what your fluoridation exposure was like when you were 20 and 30 years old.' said Neidell, a health policy professor at the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University.
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The effect of fluoride on reducing caries [tooth decay] is now well established. Water ingested during development of the teeth allows fluoride to be incorporated into the developing dental tissues making them more resistant to demineralization.
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[Research examining] the influence of water fluoridation, and socio-economic deprivation on tooth decay in the permanent dentition of 12 year old children [found] 37% reduction in decay in 12-year-olds in fluoridated wards.
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Fluoride is incorporated into the tooth enamel while teeth are growing, and this reduces decay later on when teeth have erupted. The preventive effect is most important for the permanent, adult teeth.
The addition of fluoride to our water supply may hurt our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersThe level of fluoride incorporated into dental mineral by systemic ingestion [fluoridated drinking water] is insufficient to play a significant role in caries prevention [tooth decay most prevalent in children]. The effect of systemically ingested fluoride on caries is minimal. -
Most Divisive Question
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This Question: 4The addition of fluoride to our water supply is beneficial to our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersThe development of dental fluorosis has been associated with cumulative fluoride intake from multiple sources (e.g., water, food, fluoride toothpaste, other products), as well as ingestion of water with high concentrations of naturally occurring fluoride over a substantial period of time. However, only a small portion of the U.S. population (under 225,000 individuals) receive drinking water from public water systems where the natural levels of fluoride exceed the EPA’s current ceiling of 4 ppm.
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Dental fluorosis occurs among some persons in all communities, even in those with a low natural concentration of fluoride in the drinking water.
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Children exposed to home drinking water naturally fluoridated at optimum levels and supplemented by school water with a F[luoride] content of 4.5 ppm from age five to six years did not show dental fluorosis [staining and decay of teeth from over-exposure of fluoride].
The addition of fluoride to our water supply may hurt our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersIn some regions of the United States, public water systems and private wells contain a natural fluoride concentration of more than 2 mg/L, and at this concentration, children 8 years and younger have a greater chance for developing dental fluorosis, including the moderate and severe forms. These children should have an alternative source of drinking water that contains fluoride at the recommended level. -
Remaining Questions
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This Question: 5The addition of fluoride to our water supply is beneficial to our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersUsing a qualitative method of analysis [...] there is no clear association of hip fracture with water fluoridation. The evidence on other fractures is similar. Overall, the findings of studies of bone fracture effects showed small variations around the 'no effect' mark.The addition of fluoride to our water supply may hurt our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersExcessive fluoride ingestion in pregnant women may possibly poison and alter enzyme and hormonal systems in the fetus causing disturbances to osteoid formation and mineralization. Knock-knees, bowlegs, and saber shins develop when walking begins. Combinations of osteomalacia, osteoporosis, and osteosclerosis result in a spectrum of bone changes from an early age.
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A qualitative review of the studies found a consistent and strong association between the exposure to fluoride and low IQ [...] the children who live in a fluorosis area have five times higher odds of developing low IQ than those who live in a nonfluorosis area or a slight fluorosis area.
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[Research examining a Mexican population drinking fluoridated water found] a positive correlation between [...] dental fluorosis and the occurrence of bone fractures.
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Endemic skeletal fluorosis is a chronic metabolic bone and joint disease caused by ingesting large amounts of fluoride either through water or rarely from foods of endemic areas. Fluoride is a cumulative toxin which can alter accretion and resorption of bone tissue. It also affects the homeostasis of bone mineral metabolism. The total quantity of ingested fluoride is the single most important factor which determines the clinical course of the disease which is characterized by immobilization of joints of the axial skeleton and of the major joints of the extremities.
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This Question: 3The addition of fluoride to our water supply is beneficial to our health because:Top Support Story Added By Users[...] Fluoridated water reduces tooth decay in adults, even if they start drinking it after childhood [...] The results [of the study] showed that adults who spent more than 75 percent of their lives in fluoridated communities had up to 30 percent less tooth decay compared to those who lived less than 25 percent in communities with fluoride in the waterThe addition of fluoride to our water supply may hurt our health because:
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This Question: 3The addition of fluoride to our water supply is beneficial to our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersThere is no proof, and the current consensus is that aluminum [whose absorption may be facilitated by fluoride] does not play a major role in the development of Alzheimer's disease. But because the causes of the disorder are not understood at this time, one cannot rule out the possibility that aluminum could play a minor role.The addition of fluoride to our water supply may hurt our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersThis and other studies continue to support the clinical studies done in rats that identify aluminum as toxic for the brain. The only problem was that aluminum does not naturally enter the brain. [...] Fluoride combines with aluminum to form aluminum fluoride, which is then absorbed by the body where it eventually combines with oxygen to form aluminum oxide or alumina. Alumina is the compound of aluminum that is found in the brains of Alzheimer's disease.
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This Question: 2The addition of fluoride to our water supply is beneficial to our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersOn the basis of the most current data available on the effectiveness and cost of fluoridation, caries increment, and the cost and longevity of dental restorations, we find that water fluoridation offers significant cost savings.The addition of fluoride to our water supply may hurt our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersPreviously observed caries reductions of one-half to two-thirds are no longer attainable in the United States because other fluoride methods and products have reduced the caries prevalence in all areas, thus diluting the measurement of effectiveness, and because benefits of fluoridation are dispersed in many ways to persons in nonfluoridated areas.
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This Question: 2The addition of fluoride to our water supply is beneficial to our health because:The addition of fluoride to our water supply may hurt our health because:Top Support Story Added By UsersDuring the past 40 years dental caries [tooth decay] has been declining in the US, as well as in most other developed nations of the world [...] The decline in dental caries has occurred both in fluoride and in fluoride-deficient communities, lending further credence to the notion that modes other than water fluoridation, especially denitrifices, have made a major contribution.
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In most European countries, where community water fluoridation has never been adopted, a substantial decline in caries [tooth decay] prevalence has been reported in the last decades, with reductions in lifetime caries experience exceeding 75%.
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Although the prevalence of caries [tooth decay] varies between countries, levels everywhere have fallen greatly in the past three decades, and national rates of caries are now universally low. This trend has occurred regardless of the concentration of fluoride in water or the use of fluoridated salt, and it probably reflects use of fluoridated toothpastes and other factors, including perhaps aspects of nutrition.
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Final Thoughts
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Jordan GrossmanFounder of Niaterra News
Fluoride has become a boogieman for some "health conscious" people, however it's clearly effective at preventing cavities into adulthood, and there's little evidence to suggest that at the right dose, there are negative consequences.
The questions that remain are around dosage and alternatives. Too much fluoride can cause fluorosis, and some populations are at risk simply due to natural groundwater.
Given other advancements in dental care, fluoride isn't as needed as it used to be, as well.
The bottom line, therefore, seems to be that for some people (kids especially), fluoridating water is a good thing. For many, it's unnecessary, and for some, there's already too much. If you're concerned, see what your current water levels are and talk to your dentist and doctor about it.
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Aya AbitbulNia Creator
The research from this nia suggests that there is an overall healthy balance regarding fluoride intake. There is a likely chance that fluoride is perhaps one of the most effective and reasonably affordable ways to prevent serious tooth decay throughout life.
However, certain research raises cause for concern. As the nia suggests, too much fluoride can possibly cause bone damage and brain damage, and at the least, fluorosis, a form of tooth decay. Essentially, this nia outlines two extremes of issues that can happen with too much or too little fluoride intake, thus suggesting a balanced intake is the best way to optimize the health benefits of fluoride. -
Lea Thali
This Nia shows that there are definitely some areas of concern when it comes to the fluoridation of drinking water. While it has been shown that fluoride helps protect both children's and adult teeth, there are many possible side effects. The link between aluminum absorption and Alzheimer's is one I would like seen researched further.
Furthermore, I am slightly concerned about being overexposed to fluoride from the combination of fluoride in drinking water and in other products I consume. Overexposure can have negative effects on teeth (fluorosis) as well as the skeletal system. So, while I don't want drinking water to stop by fluoridated entirely, perhaps optimum levels need to be reevaluated.
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Tahnsarah (Sarah) Peters
From reading the research in the Nia, I am convinced that fluoride is mostly beneficial for teeth and aids in preventing tooth decay. However, I am wary of the how fluoride can endanger our brains by encouraging more aluminum absorption, and that people living in a fluorosis area is related to having a lower IQ. So, while fluoride seems to help teeth, I'm not convinced of its overall benefits to our health.
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K.T. Fei
Although there is evidence for fluoride reducing tooth decay in children and adults, there seems to be many more health concerns surrounding fluoride. Children may have a greater chance for developing dental fluorosis when fluoride concentration in the water supply reaches a certain level, and excessive fluoride ingestion poisons hormones in pregnant women’s fetus. Not to mention, fluoride encourages aluminum absorption that damages the brain and could possibly be connected to the development of Alzheimer’s disease. To me, fluoride seems to add more risks to our health than benefits.
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Abby Lyall
It seems to me as though the costs of using fluoride outweigh the benefits. The fact that it can reduce our likelihood of tooth decay to me does not justify the negative effects that it can have on our brains and other parts of our bodies, especially in children. Additionally, the evidence does not all point toward the impact on tooth decay being overwhelmingly positive, with residents of countries with fluoridated water not necessarily having healthier teeth than those drinking unfluoridated water. I think steering clear of fluoride would be the smartest way to go for our health.
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