FLUORIDE: Good or Bad?

Fluoride: Good or bad stuff?

 

I just had my bi-annual dental cleaning. I have a great dentist and hygienist. They are a husband and wife team. My girls also to go them for cleanings and other dental issues. Thank God for our insurance because our genetics have wreaked havoc on our children and they have had some interesting mouth issues. The youngest is the most puzzling as she has an extra tooth on one side of her mouth and is missing one from the other side. Needless to say, even with insurance, most of the girls' college funds have gone away due to dentistry and orthodontia!

 

I never had health or dental insurance as a child. I ate sugar like there was no tomorrow and I had horrible dental hygiene until I finally figured out that I NEEDED to brush my teeth in about middle school. By that time it was too late, the cavities were there. Thankfully the baby teeth bore most of the brunt and, after being infected, fell out and I was pardoned as the new, clean teeth erupted. Talk about second chances....phew. So, just a few cavities needed attention, oh, and I can't forget the root canal, by the time I had my first ever dental appointment at age 14.  I brushed my teeth always after this huge lesson in life. 

How does a horse get straight teeth?

 

Between 14 and 23 years old, I may have seen the dentist 3 or 4 times, I don't recall. After 23 years old, I was able to go for regular check ups as my husband was in the military we had insurance. It was at this age that I had to have another root canal. Thankfully, I have not had one cavity since. I got to have braces, at age 30, to straighten out these pearly girls. Flossing became a breeze after those years of braces! 

 

So, the subject is FLUORIDE. My Momma has always been a holistic girl, which came in handy since we didn't have health or dental insurance! She has always felt that fluoride (and other chemicals used in our daily routines, such as aluminum in antiperspirants) is harmful to our bodies. 

 

I have this discussion with our hygienist every time we go in. She is a very smart cookie and has the most amazing memory ever. I really feel like we are in good hands with her. I do not doubt her education on fluoride. I know that the college texts that one studies will all sing the praises of fluoride and it's benefits. The last time I was in, just a week ago, she showed me a photo of a tooth without fluoride and one with fluoride treatment. It was a highly magnified photo showing the pores of the tooth (did you know our teeth have pores?). In one tooth I could see the pores, like little open holes. In the other, the tooth was completely smooth because the fluoride fills in the holes to keep the pores clogged, essentially. I totally understand how fluoride bonds to and helps protect the teeth. I don't doubt it's effectiveness at this. All that concerns me is the toxicity of fluoride and how easily it is put into our bloodstream as it enters there through the mouth- the most direct way.  

Pores in a tooth

 

So, WHAT IS FLUORIDE? To get the actual scientific explanation, go here: Fluoride by Wikipedia

To be honest, that all means nothing to me because (besides the fact that my lab partner went on to become a professional criminal) I hated chemistry for the most part. 

Propaganda? Do your own research and decide for yourself.

 
The truth is that there are two distinct types of fluoride. One is calcium fluoride. Calcium fluoride is natural and occurs naturally in lakes. It is not usually a major health concern.

The other type is sodium fluoride. Sodium fluoride is a toxic waste, classified as a hazardous waste, and it is a byproduct of the nuclear and aluminum smelting industries. It is highly hazardous to human health, and is associated with conditions such as cancer and Alzheimer's to name only a few. 

 

Unfortunately, the latter of the two is what is used for our teeth.

Here are some great Q & A's I found on fluoride (original link here)

Question 1: 

 Is Fluoride Really Bad for Me? Yes and no.

Calcium fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral in dirt and is considered relatively harmless to humans due to its extreme insolubility. Unfortunately, this is not (and never has been) what is being added to our toothpaste, mouthwash, liquid drops and municipal water supply systems under the guise of dental health. It is silico-fluorides that are being added to 90% of public water systems. Silico-fluorides (including sodium fluoride) are highly toxic industrial grade hazardous wastes generated during aluminum processing and captured in the air pollution-control scrubber systems of the phosphate fertilizer industry. Fluoride in this form causes osteoporosis, thyroid disease, damage to the immune system, heart, lungs, liver, brain, skin, arteries, and premature aging.2
Until the aluminum and fertilizer industries figured out a way to convince our government to actually buy these waste products from them (using heavy handed marketing, lobbying and other tricks) they had to pay huge sums of money to "safely" dispose of these toxic chemicals.3 Advocates of sodium fluoride supplementation argue that the amount of sodium fluoride added to toothpaste, mouthwash, liquid drops and drinking water is too small to have an adverse effect on human health. My question is, "how much toxic poison do you want to put into your body?"
If sodium fluoride is safe to put into your body, why does every tube of Crest and Colgate have a warning on it not to swallow their toothpaste? Everything you put on your skin (including the skin tissue inside your mouth) is absorbed directly into your bloodstream. That is why nicotine and hormone patches placed on the skin are an effective means of administering those substances to the bloodstream. The blood vessels under your tongue have the thinnest walls of any blood vessels on the body externally accessible. This is why a thermometer under the tongue is an accurate measure of internal body temperature. This is also why placing certain supplements and medications under the tongue is an effective means of administering those substances (sublingually.)

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Question 2:

If Sodium Fluoride is Bad for Me, Why Does My Government Add it to My Drinking Water?

That is a very good question! Sodium Fluoride supplementation began in 1947 when Oscar Ewing, a former Alcoa Aluminum lawyer, became head of the U.S. Public Health Service. Alcoa was one of the biggest producers of hazardous fluoride waste at that time. A ten year experiment was performed adding sodium fluoride to the drinking water on the towns of Newburgh and Kingston, New York. Apparently, the U.S. Public Health Service misread the statistics and claimed a 65% reduction in tooth decay. They then used this incorrect data as justification to proceed to fluoridate the drinking water in other cities, a practice which continues to this day despite strong controversy.4
Today, there is a great deal of scientific agreement that ingested fluoride does not, in fact, reduce tooth decay.5  Upon reviewing the evidence, some EPA scientists have recently concluded that the public water supply should not be used "as a vehicle for disseminating this toxic substances." They called for "an immediate halt to the use of the nation's drinking water reservoirs as disposal sites for the toxic waste of the phosphate fertilizer industry."6 Some studies have actually shown an increase in tooth decay with a corresponding increase in fluoride exposure in children!7 I could reference many other well documented studies that show fluoride supplementation does not, in fact, reduce tooth decay.

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Question 3:

I have municipal water in my home. What can I do?

1.    Drink only purified water using a good reverse osmosis or distillation system.

2.    Collect and drink spring water in glass jugs. You can find a local spring at http://www.findaspring.com/. Beyond Organic sells "REIGN" Mountain Spring Water

3.    Install good shower head filters and sink faucet head filters.

4.    Consider installing a good whole house water filtration system.

5.    Use fluoride-free toothpaste. Dry baking soda works fine and saves money.

6.    Do not supplement with fluoride tablets or liquid.

7.    Find a good dentist that does not use fluoride. 

I think it's fair to say that flossing is something we can all agree on?

 So, do your own research if you are on the fence. I have always been told that by simply brushing and flossing, that is all we truly need to keep our teeth cavity free. I use a fluoride-free toothpaste mostly, but sometimes my teeth sensitivity is so bad that I have to use Sensodyne brand. This has fluoride which will help smooth over those pores. I don't like having fluoride, but I can't not brush my teeth either (due to the pain from the sensitivity). Advice to everyone, use SOFT head toothbrushes. All the others are too abrasive and cause your gums to recede (I wish I knew this a long time ago!).

One thing I am working on in life, I can't beat myself up for knowingly exposing myself to some substances that I know are harmful. I cannot escape everything. For those on the "Purist" side of the fence, this sounds silly to you, I am sure, but there can be consequences to anything. The whole "in moderation" stance, is not a bad way to be in my opinion. If I were pregnant, I would certainly take the purist's stance for the sake of the vulnerable baby. But, we all have our thresholds. Don't drive yourself crazy with TOO much information. Fluoride, after all, is only ONE element that can be encountered daily. And, just as I have decided, I don't need it every day, but there are some that I do. Just do what feels right for you. 

The Bottled Water Debate

I have a Mother. A wonderful, knowledgeable, helpful Mother. She is the reason for getting my brain thinking "Where does that water come from in that bottle?".  She is the reason for my pondering many things, but let's just ponder this one for now. About 6 years ago, when my husband's Navy job had taken us to Canada on an exchange tour for 3 years, I was on a huge mission to make myself healthy, lose weight, and spend more time on myself, ultimately improving myself as a whole. When I had decided that I was sick of being overweight, I managed to lose about 70 lbs. I spent countless hours at the gym and drank water like there was no tomorrow. Here's my "results not typical" success story .  We have lived in the States for the past few years and I had surgery to remove my gall bladder 3 years ago. Someone told me that having my gall bladder removed would promote weight gain. I guess it makes sense knowing the main purpose of the gall bladder is to aid in the digestion of fats from food. Because of the fact that the United States feels the need to triple food portions, plus my overall love of food, not to mention a wee bit of depression from moving around all of the time, I have gained a few pounds back. For those reading, trying to lose weight: Don't get discouraged, it can happen, and the pounds can stay off.  I was skinny for about 5 years after losing all that weight originally. I have to say that life comes into play, and I am guilty of losing all control the past 2 years. Now, I will have to work double time to get back to 130 lbs. Anyway, (I am so good at losing sight of the current topic!) this is about water, no? WATER....the most important element in our bodies. About 60% of our body weight comes from water. As we already know, water is more important than food when it comes to survival. But, water can also be bad for us. How so? Water can carry contaminants, carcinogens, diseases, and more. The bottle the water is in can contain leaching chemicals (like Bisphenol A).  When truly giving this topic consideration, we need to go back to the initial source of any water, bottled, tap, or otherwise.


This definition table comes from the FDA:

Table 1. Various types of bottled water.

TYPE	DEFINITION
Artesian Water	Water from a well tapping a confined aquifer in which the water level stands at some height above the top of the aquifer.
Mineral Water	Water containing not less than 250 ppm total dissolved solids that originates from a geologically and physically protected underground water source. Mineral water is characterized by constant levels and relative proportions of minerals and trace elements at the source. No minerals may be added to mineral water.
Purified Water	Water that is produced by distillation, deionization, reverse osmosis or other suitable processes and that meets the definition of "purified water" in the U.S. Pharmacopeia, 23d Revision, Jan. 1, 1995. As appropriate, also may be called "demineralized water," "deionized water," "distilled water," and "reverse osmosis water."
Sparkling Bottled Water	Water that, after treatment and possible replacement of carbon dioxide, contains the same amount of carbon dioxide that it had at emergence from the source.
Spring Water	Water derived from an underground formation from which water flows naturally to the surface of the earth at an identified location. Spring water may be collected at the spring or through a bore hole tapping the underground formation feeding the spring, but there are additional requirements for use of a bore hole.

Growing up we had artesian well water, and it tasted great! It was cold from the tap, especially in the winter. "Town" or "City" water would be considered purified. I have lived with this kind of water all over the United States. In Southern Texas, the city water was so full of chlorine that when I took a shower it smelled like an indoor swimming pool area and my eyes would burn. At one house I lived in there was an ample amount of sulfur in the water so the water smelled of rotten eggs. That was not nice. I also worked at a restaurant where the water was so bad, a customer walked into the back kitchen, holding her glass of foul smelling water while yelling, "How dare you serve this water?".  Water has so many variables. There are so many things that can contaminate it and spoil it's taste or consequently, enhance it's flavor with benefits (minerals).

I can barely remember when bottled water hit the market. It was definitely a luxury item at first. Most bottled waters that I would see on the store shelves were from other countries, like Iceland or France. Evian is the first brand I recall ever seeing and it cost about $2 per bottle, if not more.  I thought to myself, at the time, who the heck would PAY for a bottle of water? Now look at "us". What office or waiting area doesn't have a huge water cooler? What soda machine doesn't have a bottled water selection? Most cafes and eateries only offer bottled water (and you have to shamelessly beg for "free" water out of the tap if you don't want to pay for the bottled water).

Investigations have been performed to dissect bottled water brands. Here are the findings that were conducted for the Environmental Working Group on some name brand bottled waters and the chemicals that were carried in these waters: http://www.ewg.org/reports/BottledWater/Bottled-Water-Quality-Investigation


Bottom line of the reports:

"Two of 10 brands tested, Walmart's and Giant's store brands, bore the chemical signature of standard municipal water treatment — a cocktail of chlorine disinfection byproducts, and for Giant water, even fluoride. In other words, this bottled water was chemically indistinguishable from tap water. "

 So, some bottled water is just expensive tap water- in a bottle.

It would be so nice to know EXACTLY where my water comes from (just as I wish I knew exactly all of my food comes from).
In my own conclusion, I feel that spring water, out of a real spring, that is no where near industrial sites, or anything that can contaminate it's underground source, is the way nature intended. Of course, I want it tested before I drink it ;o)
Because of all that I have read on this subject, I did not believe there was a water out there that is true SPRING WATER, tested for purity then put direct into a bottle to be sold.  There is one such brand of bottled water available by Beyond Organic. It comes from a true spring, at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Georgia surrounded by 130 acres of organic land. Here is it's story: http://organicforlife.mybeyondorganic.com/Web/us/en/products-beverages-overview.dhtml
To purchase this true "Reign" spring water, it costs less than $.90 per bottle.  It's packaged in a BPA free, recyclable bottle. My children seem to go for anything that is packaged (rather than re-filling a water thermos). I prefer they grab one of these waters from the refrigerator than run out of the house without any hydration. It's also nice for us when we are in a hurry to leave and need to grab some water for the road. For the benefits of true Spring water, I think it's a deal.