For decades, fluoride has been held in high regard by the dental community as an important mineral that is absorbed into and strengthens tooth enamel, thereby helping to prevent decay of tooth structures. In nearly every U.S. community, public drinking supplies are supplemented with sodium fluoride because the practice is acknowledged as safe and effective in fighting cavities. Some private wells may contain naturally fluoridated water. What Is Fluoride? Fluoride is a safe compound found throughout nature-from the water we drink and air we breathe, to many kinds of foods. Why Is Fluoride Important To Teeth? Fluoride is absorbed into structures, such as bones and teeth, making them stronger and more resistant to fractures and decay. A
Fluoride has been used by people for many decades. The most common use is in toothpaste. Fluoride was added to toothpaste to lower the amount of dental cavities that one gets, and works by protecting the enamel (outer hard layer over the tooth). Another use of fluoride is in drinking water. It was added to drinking water to also help with tooth decay. Many people are debating whether or not this is truly safe. In the essay, “The Fluoride Conspiracy”, by Laurie Higgs, she talks about the use of fluoride drinking waters and dangers it brings by using logos, pathos, and ethos.
Fluoridation of drinking water addresses the health issue of tooth decay and the related dental problems associated with it.1 Fluoride is associated with this health issue since fluoride has been recognized as an important nutrient for healthy teeth.1
Fluorides are compounds that have been combined with the element fluorine with another substance usually a metal (Cancer.org 2015). Fluoride is a naturally occurring element found in rocks, in soil everywhere, in fresh water and in ocean water (Fluoride information network 2015). Fluorides strengthen teeth already present inside the mouth. Once in the digestive tract they travel through the blood to areas with high
Also, fluoride has long been known as a toxic substance. This is the reason that it has been used in pesticides and rodenticides and now
Are you aware that fluoride that is used to help keep teeth healthy is actually a harmful compound. The number of products that contain fluoride is actually quite high. Many people may not know it is also in our drinking water. The scary thing is fluoride is now classified as a neurotoxin.
First a little bit about fluoride needs to be known. These are the unarguable facts about fluoride. Fluoride is the
American Dental Association (ADA) has written and article on “5 Reasons Why Fluoride in Water is Good for Communities”(ADA, 2017.). The ADA then proceeds to go into depth on each of these five topics, as I will summarize in my own words. First, fluoride prevents tooth decay by being present in the
Visiting a dentist, in most cases, is not exactly an event that someone looks forward to. Oral hygiene is important in making sure that no problems arise for teeth, however, and the issue of unhealthy teeth has been combatted by advertisements, and more recently, the additive of fluoride into tap water. Fluoride has been important in the process of improving the dental health of Americans; after the addition of fluoride into tap water, tooth decay decreased drastically among Americans and most significantly among young children. It’s argued, however, that fluoride is dangerous, not required, and a violation of someone 's rights by being added to water. In reality, fluoride is a safe and effective way to prevent tooth decay by being added
Recent research, however, has consistently shown it to be an insufficient and not an effective form of prevention to tooth decay. In the most largely conducted longitudinal study following infants through childhood, there has been no correlation with increased fluorine concentration in water and decreased tooth decay (Warren, 2008). Yet, there was a correlation between increased water fluoridation and increased dental fluorosis (Warren, 2008). These results align closely with that of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDR) study conducted in 1986-1987. When water fluoride concentration was less than 0.3mg/L, 55.5% children were shown to have tooth decay, while the children with dental fluorosis was 14.6% (Yiamouyiannnis, 1990). However, as the water fluoride concentration increased to over 1.2mg/L, the incidence of children with tooth decay was 56.4%, while the incidence of children with fluorosis rose significantly to 40.5% (Yiamouyiannnis, 1990). Fluoridation of water has also been shown to be
This report investigates about water fluoridation, and its effects and why it is added to water. Water fluoridation is a process where fluoride is added to public drinking water. The main purpose of this is to reduce tooth decay. The dosage that is added to the water is paramount to stopping tooth decay. This process can only be achieved by physically adding the fluoride to the drinking water. When the fluoridated water is drunk it acts on the surface of the teeth building up the enamel. It also leaves low levels of fluoride in the saliva. This also reduces the decaying rate of the teeth. This practice is common among developed countries. This is where the rate of tooth decay is high.
The ingestion of fluoride has been associated to benefits for the teeth. According to some observers in the past, fluoride strengthens the enamel of the teeth making it not so susceptible to cavities. From this hypothesis the fluoridation of water had its start and until today it is believed to be one of the most responsible sources for reducing cavities in the population (Graham & Morin, 1999). In some author’s view the fluoridation of the water implies a significant change and the positive effects can been seen in the so-called post-fluoride generation. In this generation the number of adults without any teeth has dramatically declined and similar improvements can be observed in the periodontal health − related to gums and supporting structures of teeth − (Milgrom & Reisine, 2000). However the lack of consideration of fluoride’s potential to be harmful to human’s health is questionable and studies have pointed out the dark side of this compound (Bryson, 2006).
Fluoride plays an important role in the formation of teeth, but an excess of it is very toxic and can cause irreversible damage to the structure of the enamel - fluorosis. Depending on the extent of the teeth become white, yellow or brown spots, stripes, defects, and cleave fast break. In the case of fluorosis and in order to prevent it in children's toothpaste contains fluoride should be minimized. For children up to 4 years are suitable paste with fluoride concentrations less than 200 ppm, 4-8 years - no more than 500 ppm (values should be listed on the packaging of paste). At the age of 8-14 years, the child can use toothpaste with fluoride content of about 1400 ppm. The older the child, the less probability of getting large amounts of toothpaste into the body.
i. Although defenders of fluoride continue to claim that there are no dangers in using fluoride for dental care, the facts speak for themselves. Dr. Edward Group, who in his 2015 article “The Dangers of Fluoride” stated that “Every year Poison Control centers receive thousands of calls from people
Fluoride is one of the important heavy metal present in water and waste water. Fluoride ions in water exhibits unique properties, as itsoptimum dosein drinking water is advantageous to health and excess concentration beyond the prescribed limits affects health(5). Also Fluoride ions are extremely toxic to human body. A fluoride ion is attracted by positively charged calcium in Teeth and Bones, due to its strong electronegativity. Major health problems caused by fluoride are dental fluorosis, teeth mottling, skeletal fluorosis, and deformation of bones occur in children as well as adults (5). The waste water also containing high concentration of fluoride ions that may discharged from mines, semiconductor factories, and
When it comes to everyday use fluorine is most common in our toothpaste as a prevention of tooth decay. Dentists use fluorine as a substance straight on your teeth and in many of dental mouthwashes and as an addition - as maintenance to our bones. It has also been found in some refrigeration appliances. Fluoride is an essential ion for animals, as it does for use it strengthens their teeth and bones. Fluorides