Why You (Still) Shouldn’t Worry About Fluoridated Drinking Water
While there were exaggerated fears about fluoridation in the past, what do current studies say about problems with fluoridated water? originally appeared on Quora: the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world.
Answer by Matan Shelomi, Biologist, on Quora:
While there were exaggerated fears about fluoridation in the past, what do current studies say about problems with fluoridated water?
The same thing as always: no harmful effects.
There were never any studies finding problems with regulated drinking water. Past and present fears had nothing to do with studies, but were purely based on politics and conspiracy theory. The dose in drinking water is several million times smaller than the minimum dose of fluoride needed to even discolor teeth (the main symptom of fluoride overdose), let alone have other effects. You would need to drink an Olympic-sized swimming pool of drinking water every hour before you got fluorosis.
Note too that since fluoridation has been proven safe decades ago, there is no need for new studies, any more than we need new studies proving the Earth is round. The facts haven’t changed. But conspiracy theories never get forgotten while facts do, so in all such cases of fiction vs science (creationism, flat earthers, antivaxxers, antifluoriders, etc.), those who speak truth need to constantly re-educate people. Fear persists longer and spreads farther than truth.
But since you asked, here is a recent study that found fluoridated water prevents eye cancer: Eye Cancer Incidence in U.S. States and Access to Fluoridated Water and here is one that shows fluoridated and chlorinated water prevents suicide: 818. Halides in Drinking Water are Inversely Correlated with Suicide Rates so not only is fluoride still safe, but also it may have unexpected benefits. As for whether it prevents cavities, here is a recent paper showing that it does: Access to Fluoridated Water and Adult Dental Caries. None mention negative effects because, again, we’ve known for decades that they don’t exist in regulated drinking water. Fluoridation remains safe.
Things to remember when reading studies: 1. Natural drinking water can often contain fluoride, sometimes too much. Regulated drinking water sometimes has flouride removed, not added. So don’t confuse papers on polluted water with those on regulated water! 2. The danger is in the dose. Fluoride, oxygen, even water itself are all dangerous in high doses. We still drink water even though water poisoning kills people every year. So if the dose of your study is not listed or is higher than that of regulated drinking water, then it is not relevant. 3. Real studies are in peer reviewed papers, not random websites. 4. You can find papers that say anything. Finding a systematic review or meta-analysis is better.
This question originally appeared on Quora – the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. More questions:
