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Ask Dr. Sue
SAFETY OF FLUORIDE
Dear Dr. Sue,
I recently read an article about fluoride in a free
magazine given away by a health-food store. The
article stated that fluoride "causes cancer,
osteoporosis and hip fractures, memory and neurological
impairment and kidney disorders." It also said
that there really wasn't any advantage to using
fluoride. Is any of this true? How safe is
our drinking water with fluoride in it?
Concerned Mom
Dear Mom,
Let me begin by saying my three-year-old is taking
fluoride tablets, since we have well water. I plan
to continue giving it to him, for now. In May of
2002 the Environmental Protection Agency, in its
periodic review of water safety, categorized its
statement regarding fluoride safety as "Not Appropriate
for Revision at this Time." The agency is asking
the National Academy of Sciences to do a new analysis of
fluoridation of community water supplies in the near
future. This assessment is to include a thorough
review of recent studies as well as a review of the
impact of fluoride from other sources, including foods,
beverages and dental care.
Many highly respected advisory bodies are absolutely
convinced that fluoride supplementation
is both beneficial and safe. These agencies
include the American Academy of Pediatrics,
the World Health Organization, the U. S. Public Health
Service, the American Medical
Association, the American Academy of Family Physicians,
the International Association
for Dental Research, the National PTA, and the American
Cancer Society. The Surgeon General
has stated that "Community water fluoridation is safe
and effective in preventing dental
caries in both children and adults. Water
fluoridation benefits all residents served by
community water supplies regardless of their social or
economic status." Additional things
that we believe about fluoride include the following:
-
Fluoride occurs naturally in all
water on earth, in varying amounts.
-
Fluoride makes teeth stronger and
more resistant to decay caused by bacteria in the
mouth.
-
Fluoride also helps the teeth repair
themselves (or remineralize) once damage has
occurred.
-
Fluoride given by mouth actually
becomes part of the structure of the forming tooth;
it also
acts like a continual fluoride rinse because the
fluoride is then present in saliva.
-
Cavity rates have greatly diminished
in areas where fluoride has been added to the
drinking
water.
No other public health measure has been
studied more in terms of safety. There have been
more than 3700 studies on fluoridation and fluorides
since 1970.
From the beginning, we've had the advantage of studying
areas of the world in which fluoride occurs naturally.
Areas with high, medium, and low fluoride levels have
been studied, and it is reported that no increased
incidence of cancer, heart disease, birth defects or
allergies (or any other problem) has been found in the
areas with higher natural fluoride levels.
All negative reports about fluoride safety have been
thoroughly investigated by scientists and government
officials and have reportedly been found to be baseless.
Thanks to fluoridation of city water, half of all
children ages 5 to 17 have never had a cavity in their
permanent teeth.
It is believed that the only negative effect of fluoride
is staining and weakening of the teeth, and that occurs
only at levels several times higher than the amount
added to drinking water.
Some respected scientists, however, have raised
questions about fluoride supplementation and
fluoridation of water supplies, because:
-
Worries about accumulation in the
body over time and possible effects on brain tissue
and
bone have not been resolved.
-
A few studies over the last 11 years
have reported a possible link between fluoride
and cancer (in rats), genetic damage, nerve damage
and/or bone weakening.
-
Recent studies in the Journal of
Dental Research support the fact that rates of tooth
decay have declined as much in Western Europe as
they have in the U.S. Western Europe
is 98% unfluoridated.
Most fluoride critics are not demanding the immediate
removal of fluoride from our water systems, they simply
want more research to be done. In 1994 the
American Dental Association advised a decrease in the
amount of fluoride given in fluoride supplements.
Fluoride supplements are now not begun until six months
of age, instead of shortly after birth, and the doses
for children under six have been decreased. I feel
safe advising fluoride at this time, and would feel safe
drinking fluoridated water and serving it to my
children. I will welcome a thorough analysis of
all of the well-designed studies that have been done in
recent years, for future decision-making.
 
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