Fluoride: Risky to Your Health or Beneficial?
Fluoride has received a lot of bad rap over the years, particularly among individuals desiring a more holistic approach to medical and dental care.
Fluoride is still widely used in daily oral health routines. The recently released 2022 State of America’s Oral Health and Wellness Report, in a poll of more than 2,000 Americans, conducted by Delta Dental Insurance, found that one out of two respondents use fluoride products, and 79% of the parents polled noted fluoride as very important to maintaining their children’s oral health.
Is fluoride safe?
Keep reading for the truth about Fluoride use: Risks and Benefits.
Fluoride is good for teeth, and to have good health, you need healthy teeth. Fluoride is a mineral known to be safe and effective at preventing tooth decay (AKA: cavities).
There is no scientifically valid evidence to show that fluoride causes cancer, kidney disease, or other health disorders.
In simple terms, Fluoride strengthens the enamel in your teeth and protects against cavities in your teeth. In young children, fluoride helps to harden the enamel of their baby and permanent teeth before they begin to erupt.
It is not recommended that pregnant women ingest fluoride. High levels of fluoride among pregnant women has created tooth anatomy and systemic issues in the fetus of a pregnant woman.
Many communities add fluoride to their water supply, ensuring that fluoridated water helps strengthen the teeth of all residents.
If you are concerned about using fluoride we recommend you use a toothpaste which includes xylitol.
Xylitol is a natural ingredient (As well as fluoride is also an organic compound), and it will inhibit the bad bacteria and plaque in your mouth which causes cavities.
Chewing gum with xylitol will also help you if you experience dry mouth as it stimulates saliva flow and will help add healthy bacteria and more saliva to your dry mouth.
Word of Caution: Keep xylitol products away from pets as this is very harmful if a dog or cat ingests xylitol!
Food for Thought
50% of ingested fluoride is absorbed and retained in bones and teeth, and the rest is excreted in urine; ingesting too much fluoride causes weakened bones and joints, in a condition known as skeletal fluorosis.
On the basis of previous studies, Philippe Grandjean, a physician and environmental medicine researcher at the University of Southern Denmark in Odense, put together a benchmark-dose study on fluoride to document concentrations at which fluoride begins to have detectable adverse effects on IQ. According to the report, published in June 2022, and that level is 0.2 milligrams per liter.
That’s less than one-third of the recommended level for US water supplementation and one-twentieth of the US maximum allowable level of 4 mg l−1 (a level originally intended to prevent skeletal fluorosis).
These numbers are just the beginning. More cohort studies are under way, and toxicologists and epidemiologists hope they’ll help to bring clarity to the fraught debate.1
Ending water fluoridation seems to be directly correlated with a rise in dental caries (AKA: Cavities).
If you are concerned about fluoride being toxic we suggest you use products with xylitol.
What xylitol products do we recommend?
A list of oral hygiene products with xylitol:
- BURST Toothpaste
Mint flavored and does not include sodium lauryl sulfate which can cause mouth sores, including canker sores.
Be sure to use PROMO CODE: eNLAUh and receive 40% OFF all BURST oral hygiene products.
- SPRY Toothpaste
Spry toothpaste includes Xylitol. It's Fluoride-Free with a natural peppermint flavor. Check out their gum if you suffer from dry mouth or a lot of cavities. This chewing gum is a great addition to increase saliva flow and not cause cavities.
- OXYFRESH Toothpaste
The toothpaste has a Lemon Mint flavor. One of the ingredients is OXYGENE which helps if you have bad breath. 
Potassium Nitrate Fluoride
Got tooth sensitivity?
This specific type of Fluoride ingredient will literally block tooth sensitivity.
Look for the ingredient called Potassium Nitrate in your toothpaste and especially your teeth whitening gel.
Potassium Nitrate Fluoride works to block the dentinal tubules thus, blocking tooth sensitivity. (See dentin in the image above)
Celebrity Smiles teeth whitening also includes this ingredient and it has been a huge benefit to people who want whiter teeth without any tooth sensitivity.
Conclusion
Fluoride has created a dramatic decline in tooth decay (AKA: cavities) over the past 70 years. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) named community water fluoridation 1 of 10 great public health achievements of the 20th century.2
It’s up to you to decide the risks and benefits and choose what is best for your health.
Resources.
- Grandjean, P. et al.Risk Anal.13767 (2021).
- CDC Statement on Safety of Fluoride. https://bit.ly/F2Safety Accessed August 22, 2022.