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The American Dental Association Agrees Fluoride is Unhealthy
By Randi Fredricks
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The American Dental Association (ADA) has been one of fluoride's biggest advocates for many years. In late 2006, the ADA told its members
that parents of infants younger than a year old should "consider using water that has no or low levels of
fluoride" when mixing baby formula. Some states, such as Vermont and New Hampshire, immediately issued warnings in
the media based on the ADA alert, while other states took months to relay the message.
The ADA claimed that two things led to the issuance of the alert. The first was the October announcement by the Food and Drug Administration
allowing health claims on bottled fluoridated water, with the exception of marketing to infants.
The second incidence was a report released in March 2006 by the National Research Council, in which the Environmental Protection Agency was asked to
evaluate the federal safety limits for fluoride that naturally occurs in drinking water.
The report found that the EPA safety limit of 4 parts per million is too high and associated with harmful dental effects and an increased
risk of bone fractures. The report did not address the safety of treated water supplies, which have much lower concentrations.
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In clinical research, children's intelligence declines as fluoride levels increase from drinking water.
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The report also concluded that additional research was warranted because of previous studies had suggested links between fluoride and
lowered
IQs in children and bone cancer. In 2003, a Chinese study revealed that children's intelligence declines as their natural drinking water fluoride
levels increase.
In the study, children scored inferior IQ's even when fluoride levels were
similar to that added to U.S. water supplies to prevent tooth decay. As the fluoride levels in drinking water increased, the IQ fell and the rates of
mental retardation and borderline intelligence increased, A similar study in 2007 had the same findings.
The National Research Council's report also raised questions about the connection between baby formula reconstituted with fluoridated water and
fluorosis, a condition caused by too much fluoride that damages the enamel of teeth.
Some
scientists believe that even mild to moderate cases of fluorosis can lead to more significant problems. Studies have also
associated fluorosis with lower IQ, endocrine system problems, and skeletal damage.
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Leader, David. The American Dental Association's New Fluoride Guidelines.
Associated Press Sep 20, 2006.
Wang SX, ZH Wang, XT Cheng, J Li, ZP Sang, XD Zhang, LL Han, SY Qiao, ZM Wu and ZQ Wang.
Arsenic and fluoride exposure in drinking water: children's IQ and growth in Shanyin County, Shanxi province, China.
Environmental Health Perspectives 2007;115(4):643-7.
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Monday, January 05, 2009
