The choice of whether or not to add fluoride to our nation’s drinking water is highly controversial. Although many governmental agencies insist that adding fluoride to public water supplies is a safe practice, there are many scientists, researchers and public advocacy groups who disagree. Regardless of whether or not you believe water fluoridation is safe, you have the right to know why it’s in your water and how you can avoid it if you choose to. Today we’re going to talk about why some people are concerned about fluoride in drinking water and how you can remove it by installing a residential water filtration system!
Why is fluoride added to public water supplies?
The United States began fluoridating public water supplies in the 1940′s. At the time, fluoride was not an ingredient in any existing toothpastes or other dental products. The main reasoning behind adding fluoride to drinking water was to prevent tooth decay, and it was very effective at doing so. Today, approximately 75 percent of public water supplies are fluoridated.
What are the concerns about adding fluoride to drinking water?
The fact that fluoride prevents tooth decay has never been in dispute. That’s why fluoride is a main ingredient in most toothpastes and many mouthwash products. The concerns that people have about adding fluoride to drinking water are that we already get enough exposure to fluoride in today’s dental products and that the chemicals used to fluoridate public water supplies are unsafe. We’ll take a look at both of these concerns separately.
Below is a list of the effects that fluoride can have on people at various concentrations in water (represented as parts per million):
- 1-2 ppm: This is the optimal concentration that is recommended by the CDC, and it generally believed to prevent tooth decay.
- 2-4 ppm: Fluoride at this level does not prevent tooth decay any more than the previous category, and it can actually stain tooth enamel.
- Over 4 ppm: Concentrations at this level are considered unsafe even by the CDC and EPA, and they have been linked to skeletal fluorosis, arthritis and severe staining of the teeth.
What the concentrations above don’t take into account is that people are already exposed to fluoride on a daily basis when they brush their teeth. Fluoride can also be found in processed foods and beverages and on produce that has been sprayed with certain pesticides. As a result, the amount of fluoride that people consume is actually higher than the concentrations found in public water supplies.
Another concern that people have about fluoridating drinking water is the source of fluoride that’s used by public utilities. Most of the fluoride that’s added to water comes from industrial byproducts that are collected by air cleaners and air purifiers in certain industrial plants. Many people consider this type of fluoride toxic because it contains contaminants like arsenic and lead.
The combination of being exposed to too much fluoride and using fluoride from toxic sources has raised a number of different health concerns. Various studies have linked fluoridation of water with increased risks of health problems like arthritis, brain damage, thyroid impairment and bone cancer.
How can you remove fluoride from your drinking water?
Just because your tap water is fluoridated doesn’t mean you have to be exposed to fluoride in your drinking water. By installing a water filtration system, you can remove fluoride from the water that’s delivered to your home. A reverse osmosis system is typically the best option, because fluoride is a tiny contaminant that cannot be removed by most other filtration methods.
If you have any questions about fluoride in drinking water, or if you’d like a water system serviced or installed in your home, contact North Carolina Water Consultants, your water softener and water filtration system dealer in North and South Carolina. We provide service all over the Carolinas, including towns like Mooresville, Matthews and Kannapolis, NC.
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