The “F” Word – Fluoride: A 70-Year Controversy

When I was in dental school, we were taught that fluoride was like a vitamin. They taught us how to prescribe this “supplement” – even to pregnant women.

That was then – science changes! Those of us who keep up with the research, understand now that fluoride is not that wonderful game changer that would end cavities. The aim of science is not
to open the door to infinite wisdom, but to set a limit to infinite error.

The Truth About Fluoride
I wrote my first article on fluoride over 10 years ago. I never published it for fear of losing my license and having my dental peers blacklist me from the dental community. Today, the evidence and research-based science is overwhelming – the research-based evidence is in favor of the “no fluoride” understanding. The truth is that it is extremely easy to search for this information. The meta-analysis research is easily accessible to anyone – just search the medical publication PubMed.com.

Unfortunately, many “scholars” are still standing by the 1950s idea that “fluoride is beneficial especially in low-income sectors”; or that “topical fluoride hardens tooth structure,” without taking into account that fluoride is basically everywhere: in our water, processed foods, and pharmaceuticals. Drugs used and prescribed everyday worldwide contain some type of fluoride; for example, statins, antibiotics, antidiabetics, and inhaled anesthetics. The scary fact is that according to studies, 50% of ingested fluoride is absorbed into the bones.

There are many accounts on how fluoride came to be adopted, but for the purpose of this article, we are only going to look at the most recent studies on the side effects of consuming fluoride.

A thin strip of fluoride covering a child’s toothbrush contains 0.75–1.5 mg, which exceeds “recommended” amounts even by prescription. Even more worrisome is that fluoride is cumulative.

Would you give your child anything that had a blackbox warning from the FDA? If more than a pea-sized amount is ingested, call POISON CONTROL – this warning is on every fluoride toothpaste. Do you use a PEA-SIZED amount of tooth paste?!

As Dr. Mark Briener states in his article, “The Brain-Mouth Connection,” in the Natural Nutmeg Magazine March/April issue, “How do you justify giving the same dose of any drug to an infant as to a two-hundred-pound man?” And according to the FDA, fluoride is considered a drug.

The Research
There is a huge amount of research supporting the idea that fluoride is not the healthy supplement it has been purported to be. The table that follows includes some of the many peer-reviewed, scholarly research articles showing the effects of fluoride in childhood development.

 
The Facts

• The amount of cavities worldwide, even after water fluoridation and fluoride treatments, has NOT decreased in relation to fluoride use. The WHO data since the 1970s states, “Although the prevalence of cavities has declined, the majority of worldwide communities not fluoridating, or those that never adopted fluoridation, have also experienced a reduction in cavities exceeding 75%.”
• 97% of Western Europe has rejected water fluoridation.
• FDA has poison warnings on all fluoride toothpastes.
• FDA states fluoride is a drug, not a nutrient.
• Fluoride is a known enzyme disruptor.
• Fluoride anti cavity activity depends on calcium and magnesium content in enamel.
• National Academy of Sciences: Fluoride decreases thyroid function.
• Increase in fluoride exposure contributes to hypothyroidism.
• Harvard meta-analysis: Children ingesting higher levels of fluoride tested and average seven fewer IQ points.
• Fluoride is NOT essential in growth and development.
• Fluoride is an unwanted by-product of aluminum, fertilizer, and iron ore manufacture.
• The amount of fluoride in water systems cannot be measured accurately, only an estimate can be made.
• To remove fluoride from water, a reverse-osmosis system is required.

We are all on the same side – we all want there to be less cavities in teeth and improved dental health. Unfortunately, research and experience show that fluoride is not the answer we all hoped it would be.

Thankfully, there is emerging evidence and research supporting new products like hydroxyapatite (the mineral teeth are actually made of). These products are as effective, if not more so, than fluoride at preventing tooth decay – without sacrificing our health.

So, let’s NOT use that “F” word anymore!

Dr. Josephine Perez, DMD, has been practicing dentistry for 30 years. She is a graduate of Tufts University School of Dentistry in Boston and interned at New Orleans Coast Guard/Navy Base. Her holistic approach to dentistry encompasses each person’s unique and entire (or whole—holistic) state of physical and emotional well-being. The ability to maintain health through preventive measures and treatments of oral disease is her priority. Dr. Perez focuses on the underlying condition, rather than only treating the symptoms. She tests for biocompatibility to find pathways to reduce inflammation and apply biocompatible and biomimetic materials, supplements, essential oils to restore and strengthen the oral cavity and ultimately, the whole body. After decades of restoring and transforming smiles, Dr. Perez has integrated total wellness into her oral health enhancement practice—a revolutionary style of dentistry.

Visit Pure Dental in Naples at 4444 Tamiami Trail N, Ste. 6–7, call 239.692.9623 or go to: puredentalnaples.com.