We all know that fluoride is added to many water supplies, we know it’s found in toothpaste, and we know that there are fluoride treatments happily provided by the local dentist. Proponents of fluoridation believe it helps to prevent tooth decay.

But what exactly is fluoride? Fluoride is naturally occurring when salts from the element fluorine combine with minerals in soil or rocks. Like so many things that were once considered safe not that long ago such as asbestos, lead, and even smoking cigarettes, fluoride was considered safe, but studies are now showing just what types of damage it can cause. In fact, there really is nothing good about fluoride, and the reasons why it’s really, really, bad may shock you!

The use of fluoride has a very dark past. It is a waste by-product of aluminum and fertilizer production and has been added to water supplies since the mid-1940s. It has been used as a rat poison, however, its darkest use was when it was used as a “key” ingredient in producing the atomic bomb for the “Manhattan Project”.

We know that excessive exposure to fluoride can be toxic to humans due to accumulation in the body over time and it then can create health problems. This is of great concern because people are exposed, simply by drinking tap water, soda, and even beer, the higher the fluoride content in the water, the more exposure the individual has.

As previously mentioned, it is a naturally occurring element found in many places around the world. In China, where there are populations overexposed to fluoride government agencies are looking for solutions to reduce the public’s exposure.  High fluoride content is found in groundwater and natural springs in these areas. For example, a risk assessment was conducted on the groundwater in the northern Anhui Province in China. They stated that high fluoride content in drinking water can cause dental fluorosis, which is recognized by brown stains on teeth. Worse yet, prolonged ingestion of large amounts of fluoride can lead to the development of skeletal fluorosis, a chronic bone disease that can lead to crippling.

There are many scientific studies that are being published on the harmful effects of fluoride. In 2006, a National Research Council report concluded that fluoride is an endocrine disruptor that can alter normal endocrine function or response. Most recent evidence-based scientific research has been conducted using the gold standard of the most important US public health database, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Researchers found that fluoride exposure may negatively influence reproductive health among youth.

Other researchers using the NHANES database, investigated whether fluoridated drinking water would impair renal function in the age group between 12-19 years old. Their results were alarming because they found that water fluoridation resulted in higher plasma fluoride levels, and lead to lower renal function. They concluded that routine water fluoridation may affect many millions of Americans with chronic kidney disease, who are particularly susceptible to heavy metal and mineral accumulation.

Additional research has also found that prenatal exposure to fluoride is associated with sustained impacts on IQ. These findings contribute to the growing body of evidence on fluoride’s neurotoxicity and indicate a need to develop recommendations for pregnant women.

Are you having sleeping problems? If you answered yes, here is yet another study that used the NHANES database and found that fluoride from environmental sources accumulates preferentially in the pineal gland which produces melatonin, the hormone that regulates the sleep-wake cycle. This study discovered that chronic low-level fluoride exposure is linked with sleep patterns and daytime sleepiness among older adolescents in the United States. The study found that each 0.52 mg/L increase in household tap water fluoride concentration was associated with a 1.97 times higher likelihood of adolescents reporting having experienced symptoms suggestive of sleep apnea at least once per week. This remained significant after stringent corrections for multiple comparisons. Specifically, higher water fluoride concentrations were associated with higher odds of participants reporting snorting, gasping, or stopping breathing while sleeping at night. This is truly alarming, as are all the other data that has been reported on fluoride exposure.

Let’s not forget the warning label on fluoride-containing toothpaste…In 1997 the Food and Drug Administration toughened the warning on every tube to read, “If more than used for brushing is accidentally swallowed, get medical help or contact a poison control center right away.” Regarding such warning labels, they say that children under the age of six should not have more than a pea-sized amount of toothpaste on their toothbrushes. Why on earth would anyone ever buy a product with that type of label on it, especially for a child’s use?

Furthermore, how many parents supervise their young children to see how much toothpaste they place on their toothbrushes? Consumer advertising, on the contrary, normally shows a toothbrush literally covered by a large amount of toothpaste, with the excess curling over the end of the brush.

It is often said that the dose makes the poison. If more than a pea-sized amount is too much of a risk for a child’s exposure, then – again – why would you ever buy it?  The special interest groups talk about risks and benefits. Do you want your child, or yourself for that matter, to be exposed to this type of toxic material? Educated consumers will make the right choices. This is one more time when an industry has told a lie so many times that it becomes “the truth.” No child ever got a cavity due to a lack of fluoride in the diet. PERIOD!

What about fluoride supplements? They, too, can cause death in small children.  In fact, the Canadian Dental Association has recommended that children under three years of age not receive these supplements. Yet, there are still physicians here in the United States recommending fluoride tablets for children. Accidental overdoses have been reported, as well.

“There is not a single scientific or laboratory study from anywhere in the world which proves that fluoridation reduces tooth decay in humans. There are, however, hundreds of published scientific papers which show that water fluoridation is dangerous to human, animal, plant, and aquatic life, which is no surprise, since fluoride is more toxic than lead and only marginally less so than arsenic.”

The American public has been lied to repeatedly about the efficacy of fluoride, it is time for the truth to emerge. The takeaway is that fluoride is not safe, has never been safe, and should be avoided at all costs. So, the next time you go to the store for your toothpaste, read the label and always choose fluoride-free, in fact, try to get the most natural toothpaste that is available.