Fluoride: Good or Bad?

Fluoride is a chemical normally added to toothpaste to help prevent tooth disintegrate. In many countries, it ’ sulfur besides added to the body of water provision for this reason. however, many people are concerned about the potential harms from excessive fluoride inhalation. This article takes an in-depth look at fluoride and examines how it can affect your health.

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What is fluoride?

Fluoride is the negative ion of the element fluorine. It ’ s widely found in nature, in hound amounts. It occurs naturally in air, soil, plants, rocks, bracing urine, seawater, and many foods. Fluoride besides plays a function in the mineralization of your bones and teeth, a procedure essential for keeping them hard and strong. In fact, approximately 99 % of the consistency ’ sulfur fluoride is stored in bones and teeth ( 1 ). Fluoride is besides authoritative for preventing dental caries ( cavities ). This is why it ’ s a common ingredient in dental care products and is added to the water supply in many countries ( 2 ) .

Summary Fluoride is the ionize kind of the component fluorine. It ’ s widely distributed in nature and supports the mineralization of bones and teeth. Fluoride may besides help prevent cavities .

Sources of fluoride

fluoride can be ingested or applied locally to your teeth. major sources of fluoride include ( 3 ) :

• Fluoridated water or salt. Countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia add fluoride to their public water supplies. In the United States, fluoridated water should ideally contain approximately 0.7 mg per liter. Some countries may fluoridate salt or milk as well (2, 4, 5).
• Groundwater. Groundwater naturally contains fluoride, but the concentration varies. For example, some areas of India have dangerously high levels of fluoride in their water supply. This may lead to serious health problems (6).
• Fluoride supplements. These are available as drops or tablets. Fluoride supplements are recommended for children over 6 months of age who have a high risk of developing cavities and live in areas with non-fluoridated water supplies (1).
• Some foods. Certain foods may be processed using fluoridated water or may absorb fluoride from the soil. Tea leaves, especially old ones, may contain fluoride in higher amounts than other foods.
• Dental care products. Fluoride is added to a number of dental care products on the market, such as toothpaste and mouth rinses.

Water fluoridation is controversial

Adding fluoride to public drink in water is a decades-old practice to reduce cavities, but it remains controversial — specially as research reveals more potential downsides to excessive fluoride inhalation. Water fluoridation started in the United States in the 1940s, and over 70 % of the U.S. population presently receives fluoridate water ( 7 ). On the other hired hand, water fluoridation is fairly rare in Europe. many countries have decided to stop adding fluoride to public drinking water due to guard and efficacy concerns, but it is available through other means — like fluoridated milk and strategic arms limitation talks, or fluoride supplements ( 8 ). many people are besides disbelieving about the potency of fluoridate water. Some feel that dental health should be dealt with at the individual degree, rather than through a community-wide treatment. additionally, fluoride appears to be more effective for cavities when applied directly in the mouth, rather than merely passing through it, as is the case with water ( 8, 9 ). interim, many health organizations continue to support the fluoridation of water and say that it ’ s a cost-efficient direction to reduce cavities. however, a 2015 reappraisal notes that most of the studies justifying the use of fluoridate water system were conducted in the 1970s or earlier, highlighting a indigence for more holocene inquiry to support this widespread public health enterprise ( 10 ) .

Summary Water fluoridation is a public health intervention that continues to be a subject of debate. While many health organizations support it, holocene evidence suggests that target interventions may be more effective .

Benefits of fluoride

dental caries, besides known as cavities or tooth decay, are an oral disease. They ’ re caused by bacteria living in your mouth. These bacteria break down carbs and produce organic acids that can damage tooth enamel, the mineral-rich out layer of a tooth. This acid can lead to loss of minerals from the enamel, a process called demineralization ( 11 ). When the substitute of minerals, called remineralization, doesn ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate keep up with minerals lost, cavities develop.

Fluoride may help prevent cavities by decreasing demineralization, enhancing remineralization, and inhibiting bacterial emergence and bacterial acid production in the mouth. Fluoride may besides help prevent bone fractures since it ’ s besides associated with enhance bone remineralization. however, more inquiry is needed on this subject ( 1 ) .

Summary Fluoride may fight cavities by improving the balance between mineral profit and loss from the tooth enamel. It may besides inhibit the natural process of harmful oral bacteria .

Potential downsides of fluoride

however, there are some potential downsides to fluoride angstrom well .

Fluorosis

fluorosis occurs after prolong exposure to excessive amounts of fluoride. There are two types : alveolar consonant ( affecting the dentition ) and bony ( affecting the bones ). Mild alveolar consonant fluorosis, characterized by flannel spots on the tooth, is fairly common and presents alone a cosmetic issue. More severe cases are less common, but are associated with brown stains and weakened teeth ( 10, 12 ). dental fluorosis merely occurs during the geological formation of teeth in childhood, but the most critical time is under age 2. bony fluorosis is a cram disease that involves the collection of fluoride in the bone over many years. early on, symptoms include stiffness and joint annoyance. Advanced cases may finally cause altered bone structure and calcification of ligaments. In animals, skeletal fluorosis from excessive fluoride is besides linked to an increased gamble of bone fracture ( 13, 14 ). bony fluorosis is particularly coarse in countries like India and certain early asian and african countries where it ’ second primarily associated with the prolong consumption of groundwater with high levels of naturally occurring fluoride, or more than 1.5 ppm ( 15 ). Additional ways people in these areas ingest fluoride include burning coal in the home and consuming a particular character of tea called brick tea ( 16 ). bony fluorosis only happens when people are exposed to identical large amounts of fluoride for long periods of time. It ’ s typically not an publish in countries with fluoridate water, as the fluoride message of water is tightly regulated in these countries .

Cancer risk

Osteosarcoma is a rare type of bone cancer. It normally affects the larger bones in the body and is more common in young individuals, specially males. multiple studies have researched the connection between fluoridated drink water and osteosarcoma risk. Most have found no open link ( 17, 18, 19 ). For cancer risk in general, no association has been found .

Impaired brain development

There are some concerns about how fluoride affects the developing human genius. A 2019 review found that excessive fluoride exposures in children were linked to cognitive deficits ( 20 ). Another review of studies that included data on over 7,000 children had like findings — noting that high fluoride exposure from water system was associated with lower intelligence ( 21 ). These two reviews, however, were both investigating areas where the fluoride degree is naturally senior high school. careless, a humble analyze on canadian mothers and their infants found that formula-fed babies receiving formula made with intentionally fluoridated tap body of water had a lower “ performance IQ ” than breastfed babies in the sketch ( 22 ). Despite this, the body of research as a whole doesn ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate suggest that fluoride is neurotoxic at levels typically seen in developed countries ( 23 ). however, excessive fluoride exposure in infants and children does warrant further exploration, particularly in areas where fluoride levels are naturally high .

Summary Potential downsides of fluoride include fluorosis, an increased risk of osteosarcoma, and impaired brain development in infants and children .

The bottom line

As with many early nutrients, fluoride appears to be safe and effective when used and consumed in appropriate amounts.

It can help prevent cavities, but ingesting it in identical large amounts through drink water or early means may lead to good health issues. however, this is chiefly a trouble in countries with naturally gamey fluoride levels in water, such as India. The come of fluoride is tightly controlled in countries that intentionally add it to drinking water. however, some evidence suggests that even controlled levels of fluoride in water may affect brain development in infants. While fluoridated community body of water appears to be by and large safe, raw research is needed to assess its potency .

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