50 REASONS TO OPPOSE FLUORIDATION
So I’ve taken the time to write up a rebuttal. Although I’m no dentist yet, I feel it’s important that people know the misconceptions and the benets surrounding
uoride. As you may already know, it’s an element that is praised in the dental
world for its eects of making enamel physically stronger and also more resistant to acids !preventing the demineralisation of tooth enamel " #he tooth’s
protective layer$. %any people argue many of the points mentioned in this article, so I’ll try my best to rebut the points mentioned by &r 'aul (onnett in )*+
reasons to oppose uoridation.
-irstly and most imperatively, it’s important to note &r 'aul’s credentials he
holds a 'h& in chemistry. /hilst impressive, it’s in no way related to the dental eld, let alone a medical one. I know this isn’t a strong point as he might well
and truly know uoride inside and out, so let me continue.
0. Fluoride is the only chemical added to water for the purpose of medical treatment
/hist this is only one of the many chemicals present in our drinking water, there’s also Iodine that’s present in water, and the level of it in water is actively
ad1usted to a level 2+.*ppm !parts per million$!mg34$. It’s mentioned in the
elaboration of his point that it is the only chemical to not improve the safety and 5uality of water 6uality is ob1ective as we don’t know what standard he is
comparing it to7 you could also call the other minerals present in water a
deterrent from pure 5uality if you’re looking at pure  H  2
O $. I didn’t read the
whole document that I linked below, but I’m sure there would be more in the nine
page long list of chemicals present in water. -luoride is added to water with the intent that it benet our dental health by strengthening our enamel layer of our
teeth and this is a fact. In fact, it’s basic chemistry that a mineral !our enamel$
will take up uoride to form a stronger mineral in the right conditions. #here are benets of having uoride at dierent ages, but I’ll address that in some of the
points below.
https833www.nhmrc.gov.au39les9nhmrc3publications3attachments3eh*:9australia n9drinking9water9guidelines90*+0+;.pdf  !page <*;$
:. -luoridation is unethical.
=ere he is terming uoridation as medication. It’s simply an element that can be
part of a larger mineral with the result of a stronger and more resilient protective layer. -luoridation can be seen as being unethical, but personally an element
that’s naturally found in the world is far from medication, so it kinda was already
 
there the government ad1usts it to optimal levels given the season and the
water composition.
>. #he dose cannot be controlled.
&r 'aul’s point here is that the volume of water people consume varies. =e also
says that )?eing able to control the dose a patient receives is critical. It’s obviously true that the amount of water one person drinks will dier from the
ne@t person, but the amount of uoride needed for health eects are 5uite high.  #he uoride in the water is ad1usted seasonally so that there is less available
during warmer seasons ! as there would be an increased consumption of water$
and more in colder seasons. In Australia, the level of -luoride is between +. ppm and 0.0 ppm. If you really wanted to control how much uoride you ingested, you
could drink a certain amount of uoridated water then switch to nonBuoridate water. /hen uoride is ingested it can aect the body if the dose it high enough.
=igher doses of uoride can cause gastritis, lesions of the stomach mucosa, and
even deathC ?ut to reach these doses, you’d have to eat a tube of tooth paste.  #he lethal dose of uoride is >.++ grams. #o reach this from drinking water, you’d
have to drink 3
0.001 =3000 L of water  per day !assuming 0ppm$. #he current
level of uoride in water assumes humans weight about <+ kgs, and drink a
ma@imum of :4 a day. So the dose one would get from drinking even 0+4 of water per day !+.+0 grams$ would be far from uncontrolled.
4) The fluoride goes to everyone regardless of age, health or vulnerability
Dkay. &entally, uoride is benecial to all regardless of age. It’s been shown that uoride prenatally will cause the ssures in teeth !grooves on the biting surfaces$
to not form sharp E shaped groves, but rather gentle F shaped ones. #his will
prevent food and pla5ue3bacteria from getting stuck in the ssure system or the ssures from being too deep for a tooth brush to eectively remove bacteria and
food. In children it will make the adult teeth form better layers of enamel, and in adults, it will repair enamel which has been sub1ect to acid attack that happens
from the waste of simple carbohydrate digestion by bacterial found in the fauna
of the mouth. I don’t know enough to comment on the health and vulnerability point he is raising. =is 5uote from &r Avid (arlsson is again saying that it’s a
medication where a person needs to take one pill three times a day. -luoride is far from that and doesn’t need for an amount to be prescribed. it’s like someone
taking protein, someone on a diet of :++ grams of protein compared to someone
taking 0*+ grams would 1ust mean the person taking :++ grams would have more proteins acids oating for the synthesis of other stu. /ith uoride,
someone who takes a high dose of uoride !still remaining a sensible amount of it$ would simply have a higher bioavailability of uoride.
 
 #his is true. %outh washes, tooth pastes and other dental products have uoride
in it. 'retty sure the government is aware of this and they tooth that into consideration when they chose the ppm of uoride in our water to be in between
+.<B0.0. Also noting that dierent ages can tolerate dierent amounts of
uoride, Australia has tooth paste for kids !under $ that has half the uoride that’s found in normal toothpaste! *++ppm compared to 0+++ ppm in adult tooth
pasteB Gou’d literally need to eat one ma@ siHed tube in one sitting to get sick$
 6) Fluoride is not an essential nutrient
Dkay, but 1ust because you don’t need it doesn’t mean it can’t help. It’s like
taking out health insurance, you don’t need it, but it will come in handy when acid tries to attack your teeth.
7) The level in mothers’ milk is very low
reatC #hat makes it safer to use uoridated tooth paste and drink government
water. Also I haven’t researched this, but I think the level of uoride in mother’s
milk will reect the amount of uoride ingested by the mum. Also kids have a lower body mass and hence they need less -luoride.
8 ) Fluoride accumulates in the body.
 Geah, in the teeth. Also in bones where it’s benecial. -luoroBapatite is the
mineral present when uoride is part of the mineral structure of enamel. It’s also present in bones and this provides a stronger overall structure.
9) No health agency in fluoridated countries is monitoring fluoride exposure or side
effects
Sure. I wouldn’t know, but what I do know is that the government is monitoring the level of uoride and hence the e@posure by e@tension. Side eects are noted
and have been studied and people don’t ingest enough to have any detrimental eects. #he last time people died from uoride was when someone mistook
sodium -luoride for our. #hey made pancakes and they all died as they would
have ingested grams of the substance. !lecture retold this story$
10) There has never been a single randomized controlled trial to demonstrate
fluoridation’s effectiveness or safety.
It is diJcult to do so. As mentioned by &r paul, people get uoride from many
sources and the number of participants complying to drinking a certain amount of water I imagine would be low. /hat has been done however is comparing
students in 64&, selected through a stratied random sample selection over a two year period, who were from uoridated areas to nonBuoridated ones. #he
conclusion was )Comparison of caries (tooth eca!" e#perience of chi$ren at the time of the
e#tension of %ater f$&oriation s&pporte the rationa$e for this pop&$ation hea$th meas&re'
Source8 http833www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov3pubmed3:***;;K<  
 
This is tr&e a$tho&)h a$$o%in) it to enter the *$oo stream ma+es it *ioa,ai$a*$e in sa$i,a' This is
possi*$e as the constit&ents of sa$i,a %hich protect o&r teeth come from the *$oo' The phosphate
an *icar*onate *&ffer s!stem he$p +eep the p- of the mo&th aro&n ne&tra$' Once it )oes o%n to a
p- of 5'5 norma$ ename$ %i$$ start to eminera$ise (ear$! tooth eca!"' .ith f$&orie in the ename$
minera$ the critica$ p- is /'5 hence its more resi$ient than norma$ ename$ (h!ro#!$appetite"' F$&orie
%o&$ not *e a,ai$a*$e in o&r sa$i,a to he$p repair o&r ename$' The on$! other %a! to ma+e it *io
a,ai$a*$e in the mo&th %o&$ *e *! the app$ication of a F$&orie ,arnish or spittin) an not rinsin) after 
*r&shin) (*asica$$! enta$ pro&cts containin) f$&orie that are esi)ne to sta! in the mo&th for a
perio of time"
12) Fluoridation is not necessary.
This is tr&e *&t its *eneficia$1 not cr&cia$' .ith )oo ora$ h!)iene e,er!one can +eep their a&$t teeth
for $ife2 3&t &nfort&nate$! this oesnt happen an %h! entists e#ist'
13) Fluoridation’s role in the decline of tooth decay is in serious doubt.
Refer to 4 0' It p$a!s a ro$e an it -AS *een o*ser,e to ha,e an effect in $o%er DF6T scores
(Deca!e fi$$e or missin) teeth"'
14) NIH-funded study on individual fluoride ingestion and tooth decay found no significant
correlation
The conc$&sion of the st&! states 78i,en the o,er$ap amon) caries9f$&orosis )ro&ps in mean f$&orie
inta+e an e#treme ,aria*i$it! in ini,i&a$ f$&orie inta+es firm$! recommenin) an :optima$: f$&orie
inta+e is pro*$ematic'; In the metho it states that the! estimate the tota$ f$&orie inta+e at each
time< thats far from scientific' A$so $oo+in) at the secon $in+ the nat&ra$ $e,e$ of f$&orie in ,aries
from '5ppm to ='0 ppm'
http833www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov3pubmed30K+*L>0+  
 
15) Tooth decay is high in low-income communities that have been fluoridated for years
F$&orie oesnt c&re tooth eca! it on$! he$ps pre,ent it' As mentione ear$ier once the p- in the
mo&th rops *e$o% /'5>5'5 (epenin) on the composition of the ename$" teeth start to eca!' Poor
ora$ h!)iene %i$$ ca&se tooth eca! an so %o&$ poor foo choices' A ?0? paper state that 7Poor
ini,i&a$s isproportionate$! cons&me ine#pensi,e processe foos common$! enriche %ith
phosphor&s>*ase foo preser,ati,es;' 6ore processe foos contain s&)ars an simp$er
car*oh!rates' This is %hat the *acteria $i,e off an the! *! pro&ct of their meta*o$ism is $actic aci
an a fe% others'
16) Tooth decay does not go up when fluoridation is stopped.
Theres anecota$ e,ience that it oes' IN cairns the $oca$s petitione to remo,e f$&orie from the
rin+in) %ater an it %as remo,e' Since then it has *een note *! entists ser,in) the comm&nit!
that the $e,e$ of tooth eca! no% is 7unprecedented”.
 
 
17) Tooth decay was coming down before fluoridation started
This is pro*a*$! &e to an increase a%areness of the importance of )oo ora$ h!)iene' The $e,e$ of
tooth eca! certain$! int rise after f$&ories intro&ction'it sho&$ a$so *e note that the time frame
in the )raph inc$&e the )reat %ars' There %as a ec$ine in s&)ar at these times' A)ain f$&orie isnt
 
meant to *e the c&re for tooth eca! its B&st there to he$p pre,ent it a)ainst the man! factors that are
in,o$,e in the tooth eca! process'
http833www.bbc.co.uk3history3topics3rationing9in9ww:  
18) The studies that launched fluoridation were methodologically flawed.
Seein) ho% one of his so&rces )&esstimate the f$&orie inta+e I ont thin+ he has a point here'
19) Children are being over-exposed to fluoride.
 An a$so to ,io$ence in ,ieo )ames' If &se appropriate$! there %o&$ *e no o,er e#pos&re' The
conition the! refer to is ca&se *! o,ere#pos&re &rin) tooth formation' For this reason theres tooth
paste %ith ha$f the f$&orie content of re)&$ar toothpaste' The st&! the! &se $oo+e at chi$ren in the
US %here chi$rens tooth paste is not a,ai$a*$e'
20) The highest doses of fluoride are going to bottle-fed babies.
I %o&$ sa! that the *a*ies are at hi)h ris+ of reachin) oses of f$&orie that ma! ca&se pro*$ems for
them &e to their $i)ht %ei)ht *&t seein) ho% the! on$! rin+ a*o&t 00>00mL of %ater %ith their
form&$a per a! IF their iet consists so$e$! of *a*! form&$a the! are far from ris+'
21) Dental fluorosis may be an indicator of wider systemic damage.
This c$aim is *ase on 7man! s&))estions;' A$$ the st&ies he $in+s are ones that sho% e#cess f$&orie
&rin) the formation of teeth %i$$ ca&se enta$ f$&orosis %hich is a fact' The! ma+e mention of
s+e$eta$ f$&orosis' Loo+in) at their $in+ the! are referrin) to peop$e in Inia an China %here the
a,ai$a*i$it! to rin+in) %ater is hi)h$! compromise' Drin+in) nat&ra$ %ater %ith hi)h $e,e$s of f$&orie
is most $i+e$! responsi*$e for this'
http833en.wikipedia.org3wiki3Indian9states9ranking9by9drinking9water 
22) Fluoride may damage the brain
The st&! here $oo+s at rats an the! )a,e them a prett! hi)h ose for h&mans to in)est s&ch hi)h
$e,e$s %o&$ re&ire a iet of co$)ate' The! refer to another st&! %here the! )a,e the mice %ater
%ith 7as $o% as 75 ppm F$&roie' As I mentione ear$ier optima$$! f$&oriate %ater is 0'=>'
23) Fluoride may lower IQ
 As mentione in point ? areas %here peop$e rin+ %ater %ith a*s&r $e,e$s of f$&orie %o&$ *e &e
to socio>economic stat&s' -ere the! $oo+e at peop$e from China Iran Inia an me#ico< co&ntries
notorio&s$! +no%n for their s$&ms an $o% access to rin+in) %ater ()o,ernment rin+in) %ater"' A$so
some $a! in Cairns %hen the! %ere ar)&in) f$&ories presence in %ater sai the! her *a*!s
,oca*&$ar! %ent from 50 to 500 after the! remo,e f$&orie' Lo$' (ma!*e time a$$o%e them to rea
moreG"
24) Fluoride may cause non-IQ neurotoxic effects.
6a!*e hi)h $e,e$s' I %o&$nt +no% m&ch a*o&t this'
25) Fluoride affects the pineal gland.
I %o&$nt +no%' 4&ic+ research sho%s that !es it oes acc&m&$ate in the *rain %as %e a)e *&t a$$
the st&ies performe %ere on rats an theres no e,ience to sho% that it affects moo or an!thin)'
Theres mention of )ir$s from f$&oriate comm&nities )ettin) their perio 5 months ear$ier that )ir$s in
 
non>f$&oriate re)ions' I ta+e a )&ess that )enetics in the comm&nit! %o&$ p$a! a *i) ro$e' A$so 5
months isnt a *i) time ifference' Some peop$es teeth er&pt at ifferent times to others< theres a
h&)e ,aria*i$it! in thin)s %hen it comes to )enetics' 3&t Im no )eneticist so I )&ess I cant sa! m&ch
on this one'
26) Fluoride affects thyroid function
Not s&re on this one either *&t i ima)ine this happens at hi)h oses of F$&orie' Its mentione in
their st&! the peop$e o*ser,e %ere ha,in) an!%here *et%een ' an ' m)9 a!' This %o&$ *e
e&i,a$ent to someone in A&stra$ia rin+in) *et%een ?>0L a a!' A$so e,er! *oi$! f&nction %i$$
ec$ine %ith a)e re)ar$ess of hea$th stat&s'
27) Fluoride causes arthritic symptoms.
No c$&e' 3&t a)ain the! mention s+e$eta$ f$&orosis %hich oesnt occ&r in p$aces %ith optima$ $e,e$s of
f$&orie' 8oo)$e sho%e no res&$t of cases in A&stra$ia e,er'
So&rce@ Hamins+! LS 6ahone! 6C Leach 6e$i&s 6i$$er 6' F$&orie@ *enefits an ris+s of
e#pos&re' Crit Re, Ora$ 3io6e 01@?>
28) Fluoride damages bone
.e %ere ta&)ht that it can increase the *ones ensit! %ith the minera$ f$&oroapatite' A)ain e#cessi,e
amo&nts %i$$ $ea to s+e$eta$ f$&orosis *&t there are %ith e#cessi,e amo&nts'
29) Fluoride may increase hip fractures in the elderly. 
 A)ain this st&! $oo+s at china %here $e,e$s of s+e$eta$ f$&orosis are hi)h main$! &e to the %ater the!
rin+ nat&ra$$!' From %i+i “In some areas, skeletal fluorosis is endemic. While fluorosis is
most severe and widespread in the two largest countries - India and China - UNICE
estimates that !fluorosis is endemic in at least "# countries across the glo$e. %he total
num$er of people affected is not known, $ut a conservative estimate would num$er in the
tens of millions.
 
30) People with impaired kidney function are particularly vulnerable to bone damage
This is a $o)ica$ point' E#cess f$&orie %i$$ ca&se pro*$ems' The fact that the! &se case st&ies
inicates the rarit! of someone *ein) in this position
31) Fluoride may cause bone cancer (osteosarcoma)
Damn %hat oesnt ca&se cancer no%aa!sG First$! the! st&! %as one on rates an the %e*site
e,en sa!s the ph!sio$o)! is ifferent in h&mans an rats' Secon$! their ar)&ment here is a$$
spec&$ation an the! thro% the term 7 p$a&si*$e; an 7 ma!; a $ot'
32) Proponents have failed to refute the Bassin-Osteosarcoma study
This st&! has a sma$$ samp$e siJe an the! %erent chosen at ranom' A$so I ha,ent rea the f&$$
research artic$e'
I +no% p$ent! of entists %ith +is 1"
34) Some individuals are highly sensitive to low levels of fluoride
The st&! the! )ot this from %as a !ear st&!' On$! K of peop$e e,e$ope some sort of affect
from it' Prett! )oo os in m! opinion' A$so the s&*Bects %ere peop$e %ho %ere in hospita$ ma!*e it
co&$ ha,e affecte %ith their meicationsG .ho +no%s'
35) Other subsets of population are more vulnerable to fluoride’s toxicity
 A$$ the points the! mention here is sa!in) that peop$e %ith pre>e#istin) hea$th conitions are more
,&$nera*$e' Someone %hos ma$n&tritione %i$$ *e more ,&$nera*$e to an!thin)
36) There is no margin of safety for several health effects
The! sai it themse$,es; hi)h nat&ra$ $e,e$s of f$&orie; an a)ain %ith the Inia an china )ro&p'
37) Low-income families penalized by fluoridation.
This is an &ns&*stantiate point *&t to p$a! a$on) its ta$+in) a*o&t f$&orosis %hich is %hen too m&ch
f$&orie )oes into the teeth an ca&ses faint strea+s of cha$+! %hite in teeth' Se,erit! can ,ar! an its
not a$%a!s 7&nsi)ht$!;
38) Black and Hispanic children are more vulnerable to fluoride’s toxicity
Ni))er p$ease' This %o&$ *e more re$ate to &ncontro$$e f$&orie $e,e$s an improper &se of enta$
pro&cts containin) f$&orie'
39) Minorities are not being warned about their vulnerabilities to fluoride.
This point sa!s that minorities ha,e a hi)her pre,a$ence of mor*iities in their comm&nit!' An!one
%ho is sic+ is pro*a*$! more s&scepti*$e an ,&$nera*$e to other thin)s'
41) The chemicals used to fluoridate water are not pharmaceutical grade.
I int p&t the orer in *&t f$&orie is f$&orie' .here it came from NaF or the ferti$iser in&str! its
sti$$ the same atom %ith protons an ne&trons an it has the e#act same effect re)ar$ess of
so&rce'
42) The silicon fluorides have not been tested comprehensively.
 #o add to point L0, they add both Ma- and Sodium uorosilicate as uoride oating in the water system may attach itself to other compounds present in
water. #hey reviewed the addition of Sodium uorosilicate to water in :++>, after it was introduced in 0K;>. #hey didn’t see a problem with it.
https833www.nhmrc.gov.au39les9nhmrc3publications3attachments3eh*:9australia n9drinking9water9guidelines90*+0+;.pdf  page 00K;
 
43) The silicon fluorides may increase lead uptake into children’s blood
It’s a good thing they monitor for lead in our water.
44) Fluoride may leach lead from pipes, brass fittings and soldered joints
)%ay.
 
=e may be right, although there’s a lot of studies on uoride. I honestly don’t
think there’s a big push to research more into uoridation as it’s cheap and it chemically makes enamel stronger and back from point 0, it has been noted to
have an eect on reducing tooth decay and better oral health.
46) Endorsements do not represent scientific evidence
KL>L papers 1ust searching dental caries uoride. #here’s a lot of scientic
evidence.
47) Review panels hand-picked to deliver a pro-fluoridation result
-luoridation is a cheap and eective way to prevent tooth decay and it costs the
government something like Q+.0L per mega tonne of water. I#’s better for the government to pay that then the dental bills that come with tooth decay for
people on health care cards or the (hild dental benets schedule.
48) Many scientists oppose fluoridation. 
I think they’re 1ust grumpy people. ive your local scientist a hug.
49) Proponents usually refuse to defend fluoridation in open debate. 
-ight me one on one &r 'aul.
50) Proponents use very dubious tactics to promote fluoridation
 #he evidence is clear and so is the science behind the benets of uoride in
teeth during the prenatal, adolescent and adult phases of life.