Not too long ago I was talking with my mom about water fluoridation. She said that she isn’t a big fan of it. When I asked her why, she said that although she thinks it is good for teeth, she doesn’t like that they use toxic waste fluoride to fluoridate our public water supplies. I was pretty skeptical, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt to look into this claim.
Here’s what I found.
The Three Types of Fluoride That Are Used in Water Fluoridation
There are three main types of fluoride used to fluoridate public water supplies in the United States: sodium fluoride, sodium fluorosilicate, and fluorosilicic acid. Here’s a quick overview of each of those materials:
Sodium fluoride is a white powder or crystal. It is easy to transport and is the “gold standard” of water fluoridation. When artificial water fluoridation began, sodium fluoride was the powder that was used. Unfortunately, sodium fluoride is relatively expensive, so some utility companies use other fluoride-containing compounds. It is made up of the elements sodium and fluorine.
Fluorosilicic acid is a liquid by-product formed when phosphate fertilizers are made. It is a liquid that has varying concentrations. Due to the liquid form, it is expensive to ship. It is made up of the elements hydrogen, silicon, and fluorine.
Sodium fluorosilicate is similar to fluorosilicic acid, but it is in powder form. It is much less expensive to ship and has thus found widespread usage in many cities throughout the United States. It is made up of the elements sodium, silicon, and fluorine.
Just to clarify above, fluorine is an element whose ion is known as fluoride.
Fluoride Used in Water Fluoridation Must Meet Rigorous Standards
The American Water Works Association has set rigorous standards that fluoride must meet in order to be used in public water supplies. Here is how they describe each set of guidelines:
“The purpose of this standard is to provide purchasers, manufacturers, and suppliers with the minimum requirements for [the particular type of fluoride], including physical, chemical, packaging, shipping, and testing requirements.”
Here are their guidelines for the three types of fluoride used to fluoridate public water supplies:
- Sodium Fluoride Water Fluoridation Guidelines
- Sodium Fluorosilicate Water Fluoridation Guidelines
- Fluorosilicic Acid Water Fluoridation Guidelines
Is Water Really Fluoridated With Toxic Waste Fluoride?
Water is fluoridated with the above three fluoride-containing chemicals. Many times, these fluoride chemicals are by-products of fertilizer production or other industrial by-products. Calling them “toxic waste” may be a bit of a stretch.
Before the fluoride “waste products” can find their way into our water, they must be purified and have any contaminants removed so that when they are added to water, the water can still meet the minimum water quality guidelines.
If you’re interested in learning more about the water quality guidelines in the United States, here’s a good resource put out by the Environmental Protection Agency of all the chemical contaminants that are regulated in the public water supply.
Conclusion
If pure toxic waste were added to our drinking water, it wouldn’t be safe to drink. Fluoride, when added to water has been found to make teeth more resistant to cavities. On the flip side of the coin, fluoride also causes dental fluorosis.
If you have any questions, comments, or opinions to share on the chemicals we use to fluoridate our water supplies, please leave them in the comments section below. Thanks for reading!
This is good to know. I had heard this rumor too somewhere. After reading more about it online it seems that there are a lot of people against fluoride. It helps the teeth and people have had fluoride in their water for years without any problems. Thanks for breaking this down how you did. It helped me understand the issue better.
Hi Melody – No problem! There are passionate people on both sides of the water fluoridation issue. I think both sides have some very good points. I am actually planning a couple of posts for the near future that will argue both the pro water fluoridation side and the anti water fluoridation side.
That will be an interesting short article Tom on the pro side, as I can’t think of one good reason why we would want to or need to ingest fluoride! I haven’t used it in my dental products for over two years and no cavities. My water is filtered to remove it, so no thanks. The toothpaste label does say though that if children under the age of 5 ingest the toothpaste to take them directly to the emergency room and Sensodyne says kids under the age of 12 need to consult a Dentist or Dr. before using. The only reason I can think of for that is that their bodies and parts are smaller and more easily affected. A toxin is a toxin is a toxin, I don’t care how you dress it up!
fluoride is poison used in in rat poison and is causing the increased autism rate in america
Fluoride does NOT help teeth when ingested. Even the American Dental Association is beginning to get on board with new information that shows any benefit from fluoride is from TOPICAL exposure. Any difference in decay between people drinking fluoridated water and people drinking non-fluoridated water is quite minimal.
Fluoride is indeed toxic. Somewhere between arsenic and lead. The EPA has ZERO tolerance for lead, why on earth does anyone think it is a good idea to put something with that level of toxicity in drinking water, and call it good?
One other little factoid; NO research has been done to prove that fluoride is safe for all ages. All other medicines must undergo rigorous testing. Fluoride is more toxic to children than to adults, and medical organizations are now recommending that young children receive NO fluoride. Here is a link discussing that:
http://fluoridealert.org/issues/infant-exposure/new-recommendations/
As a person living in a fluoridated community, and works with elementary age children, I am appalled at the number of kids I see who have truly disfigured teeth because of fluoride staining. They will be paying a lot of money in the future to have their ugly teeth covered with veneers or crowns. Hmmm…job security for dentists?
No other medicine is given in equal doses to all people, of all ages and health status, regardless of size/weight. Yet fluoride is consumed in unregulated amounts by just about everyone. It accumulates in the body, and is very bad for people with many conditions such as kidney problems. These people, as well as people with immune problems, are recommended not to have fluoride. Yet no one is volunteering to pay for the purified water for all those infants and sick people so they can avoid a compound which is dangerous to them.
Pure drinking water should be a right for every person. No person should have to fear the water that is provided to them, yet a good percentage of the population is at risk from it. As a person with autoimmunity, I am spending a ton of money every month for purified water, on top of the $100 bucks a month I have to pay the city for water to flush my fluoride down my toilet.
Read plenty of good science at http://fluoridealert.org/ an organization loaded with scientists, including award-winning chemists. You will find also information about how even EPA scientists are alarmed by and taking a stand against water fluoridation. The ADA bad-mouths them, just go read the aggregation of research papers published in credible journals. It is available there.
I’ve just skimmed the surface of this issue, I hope you will seek out in-depth information at the links I have provided you.
Fluoride is NOT our friend, especially that which is put in drinking water. Fluoride is being banned all over the world.
You may be a dentist, but I would pray you don’t just buy the “company line” of the American Dental Association. I’ve studied this issue in depth over many years, I think the ADA has their collective head in the sand, to coin a cliche.
Hi Marilyn – I have studied this issue as well and have taken a middle of the road approach. Here’s two posts I wrote:
Top 10 Reasons to Oppose Water Fluoridation
Top 10 Reasons to Support Water Fluoridation
Have a great day!
[…] Tom. “Is water really fluoridated with toxic waste fluoride?” Oral Answers. 2010. Web. April, 2015. < http://www.oralanswers.com/toxic-waste-fluoride-water-fluoridation/> […]
If water fluoridation is such an expensive process, and the amount of tap water that is actually consumed by people is such a low percentage, why are governments pushing so hard for cities to add it too their water? I feel like either some genius figured out a way to sell their waste, or perhaps there is a coverup taking place because the water already contains fluoride and other contaminants due to the widespread use of fertilizers