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I wanted to believe in the incredibleness of fluoride. I trusted the industry leaders when they said how awesome fluoride was for preventing tooth decay. “They” never ever mentioned its very sinister and dark side effects.
From the beginning of dental hygiene school, I learned all about how “wonderful” fluoride was for dental health. How it was the magic bullet to combat decay. That it was the be–all–end–all, and my best, most incredible tooth-saving tool.
For years and years, I relied on it exclusively. It was the only tool in my unfortunately very empty dental hygiene toolbox for addressing dental decay. I never did my own research. I trusted when I should have verified.
Instead, I did lazy hygiene for years (and years). Trusting that fluoride was “going to save the day”. See, I believed that what I learned in school was correct and that what I was reading in my hygiene journals was the complete story. The fluoride articles all said the same thing over and over: fluoride was THE tool I needed to combat tooth decay. Fluoride toothpaste and water for everyone, but if there was new decay then prescription strength fluoride toothpaste, as well as fluoride varnish in the office, then sealants and fillings with fluoride within the restorative materials as well as fluoride trays to soak teeth in fluoride gel. The answer was always “more fluoride”.
So much fluoride. Problem was, there was so much fluoride out there, yet dental decay was and still is a major health problem. It is at epidemic levels. Everyone had new cavities, every visit. And shame on me, I even did “fluoride shaming” to my patients because I believed in fluoride’s magic. I was the authority on fluoride (yet I had never even read the research).
I finally had to question my methods – What was I missing? What could I do better? Because what I was doing was not working. Decay was still occurring, and more fluoride was not the answer. It was a short conversation with myself because fluoride was all I knew to use to address this problem.
I did know that the best predictor of future decay is current decay. So, I read more journal articles, scouring for new information and better answers. Thankfully and very luckily, I found my way to biological dental hygiene and my dental decay world turned upside down. Biological dental hygiene looks for the root causes of dental decay. There are better tools and techniques. We can conquer cavities if we look for “why tooth decay is occurring”. We need to get to the real root causes of why the hardest substance in the body is literally melting away.
I now have better answers to fight cavities. We must dive deeper to defeat decay- it is a multifactorial disease. It is not a lack of fluoride. Relying on fluoride as the only tool in the dental toolbox ignores the many other components of solving tooth decay problems. And, finally, I know so much more about fluoride and its actions. Fluoride does not live up to all its promises.
It has many sinister side effects to which the dental industrial complex turns a blind eye. They still think fluoride is “good” and necessary. Fluoride is their monotherapy. In fairness to them, knowledge changes. We made our best decisions with the information we have at the time. None of us knows everything. Today we are overturning these old truths. It is time to verify.
Come with me as I explore fluoride’s dark side. It really is the destroyer of the human body.
(Click on any blue highlighted word- that takes you to my 100 references )
First, Do No Harm.
Fluoride is a Poison
Long ago, hatters used mercury to stiffen their felt hats, not knowing how poisonous mercury vapor was to their bodies. It took many years before they realized that mercury was a poison and should not be inhaled. When you know more you must take action and make changes.
So too is it with fluoride and especially systemic water fluoridation. Once you know better though, you must do better. The research shows that fluoride is an environmental toxin. Fluoride is not a nutrient. It is NOT a tooth vitamin. There is no such thing as a fluoride deficiency. It is a poison. It is suspected of affecting nearly every part of the human body. It impacts the health of bones, liver, pancreas, lungs, heart, skeletal muscles, and kidneys. It is impossible to avoid. It is in our water, our foods that are watered with fluoridated water, food packed in fluoridated water, medications, pesticides, cookware, and of course in almost all our dental products. It is a cumulative poison- small amounts ingested over a long time ultimately affect many body parts. It circulates in the blood and accumulates in calcifying tissues- bones, teeth, and the pineal gland. It inhibits the function of enzymes.
The dose makes the poison. With fluoridated water, there is no dose control. Someone who drinks a lot of water, has kidney disease, diabetes, or babies on infant formula all could retain higher levels of fluoride on a daily basis.
I often hear- “it is natural, and we are just adjusting it to safe levels”. Just because it is natural does not make it safe. If we must have it in our water system then we should at least have adjusted the level of fluoride to the levels that protect the most vulnerable people- those that cannot excrete fluoride, that includes the preborn, the small, young, old, medically compromised or those sensitive to it.
Better yet, we should recognize it for the systemic poison it is and remove it from use.
Fluoride and Dental Cavities – History
We started using fluoride with the best of intentions. Tooth decay was an epidemic. Dental professionals in the 1930s and 1940s found that people who lived in areas of the US that had high levels of fluoride in the water while they had mottled, pitted, and brown-stained teeth had little tooth decay. We now call mottled enamel “fluorosis”. One of the dentists involved in the early fluoride discussions was Dr. H. Trendley Dean. Dr. Dean believed that if we reduced fluoride to one part per million (1ppm) he could reduce the fluorosis to only affect 10% of children.
From there we had the great Grand Rapids/Muskegon, Michigan water fluoridation trials, as well as the Kingston/Newburgh, NY water fluoridation experiments.
The 1945 Grand Rapids, Michigan trials had many inconsistencies. A big factor was the lack of calibration between the dentists assessing the teeth for decay. By 1950 they found the decay rate in Muskegon was similar to Grand Rapids and removed Muskegon as the control group. Muskegon withdrew from the clinical trials and starts fluoridating too. The trial was ended.
Unfortunately, the science gave way to the out-and-out promotion of water fluoridation. The US approved water fluoridation even before the clinical trials were completed. Any health side effects were dismissed as minimal when the results could “stop” tooth decay. The US. Public Health Service endorsed water fluoridation and with that, all the other groups and especially the American Dental Association all signed on as well. By the 1950s the march was on to fluoridate the US.
The early studies claiming the magic of fluoride decay reduction were actually severely flawed. There really was no difference between the rates of D/M/F (Decay/Missing/Filled) teeth in areas that fluoridated and those that did not.
Then there is “Big Sugar”. The sugar industry wanted a way to control tooth decay without needing to interfere with the consumption of their product. The sugar lobby wanted to deflect from sugar’s influence on tooth decay. All doubts about fluoride’s safety were submerged.
Fluoride and Water
Water fluoridation started in 1945 and dentistry has embraced it as the best thing to happen for dental health. The idea behind water fluoridation was to change the chemistry of the teeth during development before the teeth erupted with the goal of changing the hydroxyapatite crystal to the harder fluorapatite crystal.
In 2015, the US surgeon-general Dr. Vivek Murthy proclaimed systemic water fluoridation as one of the top ten great public health achievements of the 20th century.
In the US over 207 million Americans drink fluoridated water daily with over 75% of the country fluoridated. Government statistics show fluoride reduced tooth decay by 25%.
One would expect that water fluoridation would be done with pharmaceutical-grade fluoride. Instead, water systems are actually fluoridated with the unrefined toxic wastewater by-product of aluminum fertilizer companies. The fluoride used is called: “Hexafluorosilicic acid.” It is not pharmaceutical-grade fluoride. Hexafluorosilicic acid contains arsenic. (1.66 parts per billion – ppb) The ideal maximum concentration level goal (MCLG) for arsenic is zero yet the Environmental Protection Agency (EPS) turns a blind eye to the arsenic levels in fluoridated water. Aluminum fertilizer companies would have to pay to dispose of this toxic waste, instead, they sell it to water systems for our consumption.
In July 2000, the Journal of the American Dental Association came out with a paper by Dr. John Featherstone saying “fluoride incorporated during development is insufficient to play a significant role in caries protection.”
In 2001, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) position paper stated systemic water fluoridation does not work. The government paper acknowledged that water fluoridation does not, in fact, make the teeth harder and stronger during development of the teeth. Instead, the paper stated that fluoridated water actually only works “post-eruptive and topically”. Meaning that all that water fluoridation is useless. Fluoridated water worked post-eruptively on the teeth as the water was swallowed and flowed over the teeth. Dr. Murthy did not read his own government report.
The American Dental Association finally came out in 2006 with a statement that infant formula should not be made with fluoridated water. This was not highly publicized.
Fluoride and Dental Cavities – the Statistics
The World Health Organization chart shows that tooth decay levels are decreasing steadily worldwide at the same rate in fluoridated countries as in non-fluoridated countries. Tooth decay reduction rates may be due to education and an increase in income levels.
Only 30 countries worldwide fluoridate their water systems. China, India, Japan, and nearly all European countries do not fluoridate their water.
Unfortunately, decay is still at epidemic levels. 92% of the adults in the US have had dental decay. Decay affects 60 to 90% of school children. It is a worldwide problem. What the research studies proclaiming fluoride’s great success at reducing decay/missing/filled teeth did not take into account was that decay is directly related to income levels. Poorer areas have higher decay rates. Water fluoridation at its very best only ever reduced decay by about 25% and we now know was due to topical effects.
Fluoride and Cavities- The Truth
In the beginning, it was calculated fluoride toothpaste and mouthwashes reduced decay by between 24 to 26%. In-office fluoride varnish treatments may have reduced decay by 43% (Cochrane report).
But the real truth is fluoride only hardens only the outer six nanometers of the tooth.
Fluoride has the potential to cause major adverse health effects and only a modest caries preventive effect.
It may actually increase caries risk in malnourished children due to calcium depletion.
Tooth decay occurs due to acidic plaque bacteria and fungus sitting on the tooth structure undisturbed. The acids from the bacteria demineralize the tooth enamel rod tubules The problem is that once the crystalline enamel structure is gone from the enamel rods (I.E. demineralized) it is gone for good. The lattice structure that remains may reharden in the presence of fluoride, but it is not remineralized. The lattice is hard but still porous and allows acids to seep in through tubules in the enamel to the deeper tooth structure causing structural damage deep within the tooth. Decay then happens from the inside out. This hardness allows decay to hide. Decay does not show up on the x-ray unless it is already 2-3 mm into the soft sub-enamel structure.
“Fluoride does not affect teeth caries by either a systemic mechanism after assimilation or by direct contact with teeth surfaces from either fluoridated saliva or from treated water in the tested animals.”
Fluoride and Dental Products
In dental offices, you receive “fluoride treatments.” This is a pharmaceutical grade of fluoride. Often it is sodium fluoride, stannous fluoride, or possibly sodium monofluorophosphate. Toothpastes have similar fluorides but at lower concentrations.
Topical sodium fluoride must be acidic to break down the tooth enamel so the fluoride can enter the tooth. We sacrifice the enamel to strengthen the tooth.
Currently, the favorite fluoride therapy is a varnish that is swabbed on and allowed to sit on the teeth. The problem with this varnish is that it is absorbed quickly into the bloodstream. Varnishes contain 5% sodium fluoride (22,600ppm). The idea behind fluoride varnish applications is that it locks fluoride onto the tooth structure. Varnish leaches the fluoride into the saliva for two to three hours. This allows the fluoride to go directly to the brain through the oral mucous membranes. We apply these varnishes to children up to age 14. Developing brains are directly affected by fluoride. (see brain health)
The varnish not only contains fluoride, but we must also be aware of the adhesive within the varnish. Difluoro silane is one of the adhesives in fluoride varnish. If you look up “silane” you will see it is a “flammable, and poisonous gas that is very toxic to inhale. It is a strong irritant to skin, eyes and mucous membranes (I.E. oral tissues…)”. Other adhesives are shellac, alcohols, and polyurethane. And yet, here we put these into the mouths of babes.
Another favorite dental fluoride treatment is Silver Diamine Fluoride. It is a concentrated silver fluoride salt – 38% Silver diamine Fluoride- which is 44,800 parts per million which is nearly twice as strong as fluoride varnish. SDF is also only approved by the FDA for sensitivity and not decay treatment or prevention. Dental offices do use it “off label”.
The paste a hygienist uses to polish teeth- “prophy paste” – can contain 20 times more fluoride than toothpaste used at home. Gels and varnishes used in the dental office contain very high levels of fluoride levels.
Many of the options for filling materials also contain fluoride, including all glass ionomer cements, all resin-modified glass ionomer cements, all giomers, all polyacid-modified composites (compomers), certain types of composites, and certain types of mercury amalgams. One glass ionomer-based varnish has been reported to release fluoride for up to six months.
Many fluoride-containing dental devices are not FDA-approved for caries prevention. The FDA has only approved fluoride varnishes for application when roots are sensitive. It has not been approved for use in preventing cavities. FDA regulations make the physician/dentist personally liable for the off-label use of drugs.
Fluoride treatments are a profit center for the dental office. Insurance pays for these “preventive procedures.” Costs for a fluoride treatment run from $12.00 to $45.00. Fluoride is the mainstay of dental decay prevention programs.
It is in almost all toothpastes as well. It is big business. In 2019 fluoride was a $10.3 billion industry. Change will be hard. Many pharmaceutical companies as well as the dental industrial complex have a lot invested in fluoride. Once the public is educated about the harmful effects of fluoride and the brain, as well as the body they will question the dental community. Maybe then dental professionals will wake up to the research and start thinking outside the box. Fluoride does not address the root causes of decay.
Coming soon are newer and better varnishes with hydroxyapatite crystals (HAP) instead of fluoride and silane. HAP is one of the building blocks of teeth and should be the treatment of choice.
Fluoride and Bacteria
Fluoride has one good attribute- it inhibits bacterial attachment to the tooth surface. The bacteria that cause decay- the streptococcus mutans and lactobacillus cannot reduce sugar to acid as rapidly because fluoride inhibits the metabolism of the bacteria. Thus, the real reason fluoride reduced cavities.
The bad news is it kills good bacteria too. It poisons the enzymes in the oral bacteria that produce acids. The further bad news – it also affects and disrupts (poisons) enzymes throughout the body.
New research is showing that there are strep mutans that are resistant to fluoride’s antibacterial effects. So, where fluoride once might have worked to reduce the bacterial load and decrease the decay levels, this is now no longer the case.
Fluoride and Teeth
Fluoride does something to teeth we call fluorosis. This change in the texture and color of teeth results in brittle, pitted, or mottled enamel in the tooth structure. The most common signs of fluorosis are white spotted, white stretches, or cloudy white splotched teeth. In the early years, brown coloring was also an issue. It was then called Colorado Brown stain. Since the adjustment of the fluoride water concentration levels, brown spotting is less common but still of concern as 2 to 12% of the population has severe fluorosis. The white spots of mild fluorosis can change over time to yellow and then to brown. Per the CDC, upwards of 65 to 70% of the population has at least mild fluorosis.
Dentistry dismissed fluorosis as just something “cosmetic”. I have known many patients that suffer from self-esteem issues due to the appearance of their teeth. It is unfair to dismiss fluorosis as “just cosmetic”. Patients have a desire for healthy, beautiful teeth.
Fluorosis is actually a sign of structural problems within the tooth. Systemic fluoride makes the teeth hard but brittle. In moderate to severe fluorosis, it actually weakens the crystalline structure of the enamel and dentin and makes the tooth weaker, not stronger. This hypomineralization makes the tooth more prone to attrition and wear, as well as chipping and fractures. Ironically, it also makes the tooth much more susceptible to tooth decay. It is a sign of an overdose of fluoride which affects the entire body. Fluorosis is an outward sign of inward systemic damage and problems.
African- American children are more vulnerable to fluorosis. Their rate of fluorosis was double that of white and other racial groups. Not only does the black community have higher rates of fluorosis but also has more severe forms as well. The researchers think this may be due to biological susceptibility, and a greater intake of fluoride water combined with a nutritional deficiency. The black community has a higher incidence of lactose intolerance, and these children may be deficient in calcium intake. Levels of fluoride intake that would normally not cause fluorosis have a greater impact on infants and children that are malnourished or deficient in calcium. Also of concern is the lack of grocery stores with fruits and vegetables. These children have lower levels of antioxidants in their bodies. Fluoride causes an increase in oxidative stress, and antioxidants from vegetables and fruits help combat fluoride toxicity.
Fluoride and Toothpaste
Fluoride is in just about every commercial toothpaste. Using toothpaste is an integral part of every self-care routine and fluoride is the “active ingredient that prevents decay”. The commercial toothpastes are colorful, tasty, and heavily marketed. Television teaches us to use that big swirl of toothpaste that reaches from one end of the brush to the other.
Yet, that is too much toothpaste. Instead, it should at best only be a rice grain-sized proportion for children and only over the age of six, to a pea-sized dab for adults.
A pea size amount of toothpaste contains ¼ milligrams of fluoride. Should a child over age six swallow that amount we consider that a poison. Toothpaste tubes contain a phrase about swallowing toothpaste to call poison control. Yet that same amount is in a glass of water, or a baby bottle made of tap water and formula. Fluoridated toothpaste is not even recommended for those under age six.
Fluoride and Gum Disease
Topical fluoride may actually make periodontal disease worse. It stimulates the production of prostaglandins and exacerbates the inflammatory response in gingivitis and periodontitis. Thus, instead of healing the mouth, fluoride in toothpaste and mouthwashes may accelerate chronic destructive periodontitis.
Sodium fluoride –in toothpaste and in fluoride treatments given in the dental office – may induce apoptosis of the gingival fibroblast.
Sodium Fluoride may cause necrosis and permanent alveolar bone loss when used as a subgingival irrigant.
Fluoride and Male Infertility
Fluoride affects male reproduction. Systemic fluoride reduces the motility of sperm and also inhibits the synthesis of testosterone in males. Fluoride reduces testosterone production, contributing to infertility.
Fluoride and Heart Health
Fluoride affects the health of the heart. Fluoride accumulates in the soft tissues. Blood fluoride levels lower calcium. Low calcium causes cardiac arrest. People with fluorosis have more issues with abnormal heart rhythms.
Fluoride accumulations can affect the cardiovascular system. It can cause atherosclerosis, arteriosclerosis, and stiffness of the aorta. Fluoride toxicity concentrates in the cardiovascular system and can correlate to increased blood pressure, myocardial damage, and abnormal electrocardiograms. Fluoride affects the aorta and may increase heart attacks.
Fluoride and Bones
Fluoride toxicity affects the health of bones. It not only makes the teeth brittle, it also makes bones brittle. It decreases compressive strength. It weakens bones by causing mineralization defects in the bone so it is more susceptible to stress fractures.
A study out of China shows that with an increase in fluorosis, there is also an increase in bone fractures in both children and adults. Fluoride can cause abnormal proliferation and activation of osteoclasts and osteoblasts leading to skeletal fluorosis. Skeletal fluorosis can mimic arthritis and joint pain and cause abnormal thickening of the pelvis and spine.
“There are no fluoride blood levels low enough to prevent incorporation into bone. Since fluoride is not a normal body component, there are no endocrine mechanisms to mobilize fluoride from the bone after binding.”
The bones are the final resting spot for systemic fluoride.
Fluoride causes osteomalacia, which is also known as Rickets and is a calcium deficiency.
Fluoride toxicity contributes to hip fractures. Ingesting high levels of fluoride correlated to a high rate of hip and bone fractures.
In a study of young men in China with Osteosarcoma – it was found that with expossure t young boys in China that are exposed to high levels of fluoride at ages six, seven, and eight have a 5 to 7 fold greater risk of contracting osteosarcoma by age 20. Fluoride increases bone turnover and mutations occur during this rapid bone turnover. Mid-childhood growth spurts correspond to the window of the vulnerability identified by Bassin.
Fluoride and Kidneys
People with Skeletal Fluorosis are 4.6 times more likely to have kidney stones.
Half of the fluoride ingested is excreted. Someone with kidney disease will only be able to excrete 20%. We must ask- where does the rest go?
It accumulates in the bones, teeth, pineal gland, and other calcifying tissues such as in making kidney stones. Fluoride accelerates kidney damage.
Fluoride and Brain Health
Since 2006, epidemiological research has documented six extra developmental neurotoxicants—manganese, fluoride, chlorpyrifos, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, tetrachloroethylene, and the polybrominated diphenyl ethers. Dentistry makes use of two of those neurotoxicants repeatedly.
Fluoride is a neurotoxin and adversely affects children’s cognitive development.
Brain health is critical at every age. Systemic fluoride passes the blood-brain barrier.
Would 60 to 65 studies on fluoride’s effect on brain health be enough? The Fluoride Action Network has a very complete list of what happens to our brain when fluoride passes the blood-brain barrier. We must take better care of the brain. The future prediction is that dementia will triple by the year 2050. Brain health is critical to protect at every age.
Fluoride passes the BBB and alters the structure and function of nervous tissue. Fluoride causes degenerative changes in all parts of and in the spinal cord, including axon deterioration, myelin sheath degeneration, mitochondrial damage, and alterations in the synaptic structure. It affects neurotransmitter metabolism. It causes changes in the expression of the neurotransmitter receptors. We must pay attention to all these ways brain health is marginalized.
We can repair teeth, but we cannot repair or replace the brain.
Fluoride leaches lead from old brass pipes. Lead compromises intellectual development and behavior in children. There is evidence that silicofluorides enhance the uptake of lead into the brain. Lead is stored in the bones of women and released during pregnancy. We know lead affects brain health. Lead also increases tooth decay. Eleven percent of early childhood caries may be due to lead toxicity. Research from a study released in 2017 found that low levels of fluoride during pregnancy lead to a significant reduction in IQ from one to five points. A recently published study also connected a reduction in boys’ IQ to a mother’s hypothyroidism due to fluoride intake.
The loss of one IQ point may not seem like a lot, but it translates into a 2% drop in lifetime income. The cost of this happening to millions of children is enormous to our society.
Fluoride is passed through the placenta. It is toxic to the developing brain at levels routinely found in the general population. It instead has irreversible effects on those rapidly growing brains. It has no benefits to either infants or developing fetuses. We must protect pregnant women and children.
It calcifies the pineal gland, which affects melatonin production and thus circadian rhythms and quality of sleep. The pineal gland may accumulate significant amounts of calcium and fluoride, making it the most fluoride-saturated organ of the human body. Both the calcification and accumulation of fluoride may result in melatonin deficiency.
“Chronic fluorosis can cause brain damage. It results in abnormal brain structure and function, and a decline in concentration, learning, and memory. It can contribute to mental symptoms such as anxiety, tension and depression.”
Autism and fluoride- Correlation between higher fluoride rates and increase in autism. Correlation, not causation, yet…
Fluoride and Dementia– fluoride crosses the blood-brain barrier and causes apoptosis and inflammation within the central nervous system.
Fluoride and ADHD – Mexico City Study: higher levels of fluoride consumption in pregnant mothers correlated to higher levels of attention deficient disorder in their children.
Fluoride and Allergies
Just as people can be allergic to chlorine, people can also be allergic to fluoride.
Fluoride allergies can present as headaches, joint and muscle pain, tiredness, mental weakness, swelling of the mouth/tongue/face, upset stomach, atopic dermatitis, rashes, eczema, acne, respiratory allergies, emesis, urticaria, and hives. Perioral dermatitis – acne around the mouth – may be the result of brushing with a fluoride toothpaste that foams a lot, and leaves residue from the foam on the skin around the mouth, causing acne just in this localized area of the face.
My daughter asked me why one of her mom friends would have a mysterious body rash after dental appointments. These rashes would come and go randomly every few years. My guess for this young woman was an allergy to the fluoride products they used on her.
Patients may certainly have symptoms after their appointments but because of the time lapse between their dental hygiene appointments may not connect the occurrence of hives or other symptoms with their recent dental care and specifically fluoride treatments. It is important to let the dental office know of any symptoms that may occur after any dental procedure.
Fluoride and Endocrine System
Fluoride is a major endocrine disruptor.
It affects thyroid function, especially in infants. Five percent of the US has some form of hypothyroidism. Fluoride competes with iodine receptors in the body and blocks the pairing with receptors. Hypothyroidism happens more frequently in communities that fluoridate. Even low levels of fluoride can affect thyroid function, especially when iodine intake is already inadequate.
Fluoride passes the placenta and affects the developing fetus’s thyroid hormones.
Fluoridated water – twice the prevalence of hypothyroidism and this is known to be linked to a decrease in IQ points.
The thyroid must be saturated with iodine. All halogen groups of elements displace iodine- fluorine, chlorine, and bromine.
Fluoride and the Body
Fluoride accelerates aging.
Fluoride poisons nearly all enzymes.
Fluoride interferes with the proper formation of collagen. We need collagen because it is the most important structural protein in the body. It attaches itself to a metal ion located on an enzyme active site or by forming a competing hydrogen bond at the same active site. Fluoride causes the body to age faster because the body can no longer properly mineralize tissue it should (IE bone) and instead mineralizes tissue it should not, such as tendons, ligaments, and muscles. The result is arthritis-like conditions. Without proper collagen production, we age faster.
Fluoride causes mitochondrial dysfunction.
Fluoride exposure in-utero may contribute to hip dysplasia by increasing hip capsular laxity.
Fluoride and Dogs
Dogs are very sensitive to fluoride. They are one of the few animals that succumb to osteosarcoma- a crippling bone cancer. Large dogs commonly lose strength in their rear legs. Fluoride is known to cause this cancer in humans. Dogs get high levels of fluoride in their bonemeal. We need to investigate the possible connection between fluoride and this hip condition in dogs.
Fluoride and Digestive Health
Fluoride affects the digestive system, liver, and immune system, and causes gut villi damage.
Water fluoridation stimulates the secretion of acid in the stomach. It reduces blood flow away from the stomach and dilates blood vessels. EVEN at low levels.
Fluoride changes the hydrochloric acid of the stomach to hydrofluoric acid. HF causes cell death and desquamation of the GI tract epithelium. HF is very corrosive so it will destroy the gut lining with a loss of the gut villi affecting the gut lining. It causes nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramping, and discomfort. Our immune system is centered in our gut. No healthy lining means not proper absorption of nutrients and this could actually increase decay.
Fluoride and Arthritis
46 million Americans are diagnosed with some form of arthritis. It has been known since 1930 that too much fluoride can cause stiff, painful joints. Skeletal fluorosis mimics arthritis, especially with low backpain. Instead of arthritis, you may actually have fluoride poisoning.
Fluoride and Diabetes
Fluoride increases blood glucose levels and impaired glucose tolerance in some people. It also increases the severity of some types of diabetes.
“ Impaired glucose tolerance, a precursor to type 2 diabetes has been found to occur in humans with fluoride intake of only 0.07 -0.4mg/kg/day- a dose that can be reached in areas of optimally fluoridated water.”
Fluoride and Cancer
Fluoride is a mutagen. A mutagen is a chemical that alters genetic material and increases the frequency of mutations within the organism. Mutagens can cause cancer or contribute to causing cancer.
Fluoride is connected to bladder and lung cancer in cryolite factory workers. Aluminum factory workers are inhaling the fluoride dust.
Twenty-year-old men who had fluoride exposure at ages six, seven, and/or eight – during their mid-childhood growth spurt -had an increased risk of developing a rare and deadly bone cancer called osteosarcoma during their teen years.
Fluoride is a carcinogen 3. Exposure in-utero or as an infant or young child may be connected to cancer later in life.
“Brain tumors and T-cell system Hodgkin’s disease, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, multiple myeloma, melanoma of the skin and monocytic leukemia were also correlated with fluoride in the drinking water.”
Fluoride is a Poison
Fluoride is a poison. Cryolite and sulfuryl fluoride are pesticides that can be sprayed on foods. These are very toxic products, and they are on our foods, in our wine, and fumigate our homes. Workers exposed to these products suffered subclinical effects on the central nervous system and some cognitive functions.
It is used as a rat, mouse, bug, termite, and bed bug killer.
Fluoride is an environmental pollutant. Hydrogen fluoride gas, an emission from industrial by-products creates acid rain.
Fluoride and Death
Fluoride toxicity leading to death is of greatest concern. Fluoride toxicity was first observed in aluminum workers.
Signs of fluoride poisoning: fluorosis, nausea, abdominal pain, bloody vomit, and diarrhea. Further signs include paleness, subsequent collapse, weakness, skin hypothermia, weak heart sounds, shallow breathing, dilated pupils, muscle paralysis, extremity spasms, cyanosis, and death. This can occur in as little as two to four hours.
A toxic dose is 5 mg/kg of body weight: 30 kg patient ingesting 150 g of 1000 ppm toothpaste would be an overdose. This 5mg/kg is considered the “probable toxic dose. (PTD).” This level of fluoride can cause severe poisoning and can lead to death quite rapidly.
Fluoride toothpaste ingestion accounts for most of the related fluoride overdoses. Children’s bubble gum or watermelon-flavored toothpaste tastes good to children and tubes contain enough fluoride to cause death. The warning on toothpaste tubes results in over 20,000 calls to poison control centers each year. Children under age six account for 80% of these calls. Children should always be supervised while brushing. Just 40% of a toothpaste tube would be enough to kill a two-year-old child.
Fluoride and Informed Consent
By placing fluoride in the water system, we are mass-medicating almost the entire population. The medicine we take should not be determined by our neighbors.
We are forcing this drug on everyone, only telling them of the benefit but not of all the possible side effects. The patient should have this information in order to make the final decision to take or not take this medication. The population needs to know the risks and consequences of taking and not taking a drug. This is called “informed consent”. Informed consent is a legal requirement.
When we mass medicate, it goes to everyone- old, young, sick, diabetics, those that are above water drinkers, those with poor kidney function and inadequate diets, or borderline iodine deficiencies. How can we mass-medicate when so many people have so many different sensitivities to drugs? We must protect all citizens.
A safe dose for an adult is not a safe dose for a baby. Babies and children are not miniature adults. A bottle-fed baby receives nearly as much fluoride as an adult that drinks a liter of water a day. A safe dose needs to be adjusted for age and weight. Babies brains are vulnerable to toxic agents in fluoride.
No local, state, or federal government no matter how well-intentioned has the right to force anyone to take a medicine for a disease that is neither contagious (in a communal sense), nor life-threatening. http://The Case Against Fluoride: How Hazardous Waste Ended Up in Our Drinking Water and the Bad Science and Powerful Politics That Keep It There: Paul Connett, James Beck, H. Spedding pg. 12
How Does Dental Decay Start?
Patients always seem to be holding their breath until we can confidently say “no cavities”. The cost of dental decay starts that downward spiral of pain, and expense that accompanies the drill and fill. The best predictor of future decay is current decay. No one enjoys this so we need to address root causes of decay so we can prevent it and keep teeth healthy for a lifetime.
Why do we get cavities? Cavities occur because there is a perfect combination of mineral and nutritional deficiencies, gut dysbiosis, decay bacteria and candida albicans overgrowth in the microbiome, acidic environment in the mouth, poor oral hygiene, lack of saliva, poor quality and quantity of saliva as well as frequent snacking of food the decay bacteria love to eat. Applying fluoride addresses none of these components of decay causation.
An acidic oral environment plays a big part. Teeth prefer to live in a neutral environment. Teeth are made up of minerals of calcium hydroxyapatite crystals in a lattice-style arrangement. Decay starts with the breakdown of these minerals within the latticework. Technically- it is the “amorphization of the hydroxyapatite crystal.” Bacteria poop acid (this is their “by-product”), as well as acidic foods and even acid from reflux, can all break down and dissolve these tooth mineral crystals. Normally this process of demineralization and remineralization occurs naturally. Teeth are alive and the minerals normally flow in and out. The problem occurs when they flow out faster than they flow back in. This initial breakdown of tooth structure leaves the surface rough and chalky. I can feel the difference with my dental explorer. We call these “white spot lesions”. They are the first stage of tooth decay. They are totally reversible. Problems escalate when more minerals flow out of the enamel rods, and the lattice structure becomes even more compromised and starts to break down. Teeth are literally melting from the inside out… A cavity results.
Fluoride does not remineralize the teeth, contrary to what folks think. Fluoride is not a tooth vitamin either. What it does do is harden the lattice structure. But, only the outer six nanometers of the lattice, leaving a very thin, very hard but brittle shell of enamel that is porous. The decay bacteria can travel down the tooth tubules and cause decay further inside the tooth. Effectively hiding the decay and allowing bigger cavities to develop and remain undetected until we take that dental radiograph (x-ray).
Healing Teeth
The ideal prevention protocol addresses the acidic conditions within the mouth and more importantly – ON THE TOOTH. I recommend a tricolor-disclosing solution to see how acidic the tooth surface is (plaque that is acidic shows up blue). New plaque is pink, old plaque is purple. We need to address these acidic conditions and remineralize as early as possible.
Decay in between the teeth is a result of not only bacteria in the biofilm but also candida albicans. We need to do salivary diagnostics to test and see what we are dealing with in our prevention protocol toolbox.
Healing Magic
Remineralization- healing teeth takes a lot of work and a little chemical magic.
Instead of fluoride, we need the real tooth mineral building blocks- calcium. And we need to have right size of these blocks, think a Tetris game.
It starts with eating food that is rich in minerals- unprocessed, natural and organic.
#1. We feed teeth minerals through our diet.
#2. We must chew our food sufficiently to break it down and transfer the tooth-building block minerals into our saliva.
#3. Next, the carbon dioxide we exhale converts to carbonic acid. The carbonic acid molecule grabs onto the mineral molecule which dissolves it into its ionic components.
#4. Here’s where Tetris comes into play- this all has to happen next to the demineralized white spot. This “spot” must be CLEAN, so the spot is accessible. (Teeth covered in plaque biofilm shield and prevent this remineralization process.)
#5. The chemical magic happens here: the mineral is attracted to the hole in the lattice by the electrical charges of the ion and that of the hole in the tooth. The rub- only the correct ion has the proper charge and the proper shape and size to fit into the hole.
#6. Last, the carbonic acid has to convert to carbon dioxide and water allowing the mineral to precipitate out of solution and into the enamel structure of the tooth plugging the hole.
How wonderful to have this little bit of magic to help us heal. (And who knew I would finally use the information from chemistry class.)
We do have products to help remineralization the tooth surfaces.
Prevention starts with busting up the biofilm of plaque on the teeth. Biofilms are different for each and every person, and how acidic that biofilm is while next to the tooth surface is what matters most. Brush longer, use electric toothbrushes and oral irrigation every 12 hours, use xylitol to starve the bacteria, and ozone and nano silver to kill the bad bugs, and then see your fabulous super dental hygiene healthcare practitioner to help guide your oral wellness journey. Work with your primary doctor to heal your gut and address nutritional deficiencies, and then learn about any myofunctional disorders and incorrect breathing and sleep patterns you may have that are contributing to tooth decay.
(FYI- if you have sensitive teeth but no cavities- you too have a mineral deficiency problem. Too much acid and not enough remineralization.)
Fluoride Conclusions:
Fluoride is destructive to the human body. It impacts us in every nook and cranny from joints to sleep, to acne to brain health. Babies, seniors, and those that have health issues are most affected by this drug. It may even hurt animals. Fluoride is a neurotoxin, a poison in every sense of the word. A sad fact, it does not actually even do what it is purported to do – reduce tooth decay risk levels.
Even if fluoride were the miracle tooth decay prevention tool and made the tooth 100% resistant to cavities, I would still not recommend it because of the damage it does to the body and brain. We must protect the body and brain at all costs. We can restore teeth quite well. We cannot repair the heart and brain.
We no longer need to rely on fluoride.
Our water systems should not be fluoridated, as the CDC government report cited back in 2001. Mass medication is unjust. Fluoride may be inflicting great harm on our society. We can no longer turn a blind eye to its many side effects. We must be aware of these side effects and present that to the public and allow them to decide if fluoride is right for them. They get to make that decision. That is their legal right.
Dentistry and dental hygiene have unleashed this healthcare monster and we must make the necessary changes to help solve the problem.
We now have better knowledge, more tools, and a fuller understanding of the root causes of tooth decay. Patients need our guidance. They need the facts, they trust us to be educated and in turn, educate them.
The research is there if only we scratch the surface. Whether you believe in fluoride or not, it is incumbent on you to do your own research and follow the facts, wherever they may lead you. We must make it our mission to make tooth decay extinct in the 21st century. Fluoride is not the answer. Finding the root causes of decay disease is the only way to solve the dental decay dilemma.
Know more, do better. Here is your AH-HA moment. It is time to say no to fluoride .
Sincerely,
Barbara Tritz RDH HIAOMT
Queen of Dental Hygiene
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