Should You Buy Fluoride Free Toothpaste?
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Fluoride May Be Harmful to Human Health
You may need to stop buying toothpaste that contains fluoride. Warning labels on children's toothpaste say that if more than a small amount is swallowed, you must contact the poison control center. Yikes! And we're letting our children handle this stuff themselves?
Kids' toothpaste usually contains 0.15% fluoride. If they consume more than 500 ppm of fluoride, it's considered poisonous. It can react with calcium and magnesium in the blood causing deficiencies in these two minerals.
Is fluoride in toothpaste bad, then?
© C. Calhoun 2012. All rights reserved.
Fluoride is in Drinking Water
While once thought to be effective at helping to prevent tooth decay, evidence suggests that added fluoride may be doing more harm than good. It is the only additive that is in water as if it were a medication. Other additives like chlorine and other bacteria-killing agents serve to purify it.
Most European countries have banned fluoridation in their water. Communities themselves can choose whether to add it to their water or not.
Back in the US, communities, as a rule, add fluoride to their water. This "blanket" approach to treating for prevention of tooth decay affects a number of individuals who are sensitive to fluoridated water. They may not even know they're sensitive!
If a person needs fluoride, topical application - not internal - is a better method, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Do you use fluoride-free toothpaste?
See results without votingFluoride Free!!
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Ingestion of Fluoride Poses Health Risk
Because many American communities add fluoride to drinking water, it's important to know several facts:
- The American Dental Association no longer recommends that babies drink fluoridated water, as of 2006.
- Fluoride is found in multiple sources: drinking water, foods processed with fluoridated water, toothpaste, and even in some pharmaceuticals.
- Too much fluoride is bad for the thyroid gland, kidneys, bones and even the brain.
If you need or want fluoride, there is a better way.
If fluoride is taken out of the water supply, the small amounts needed will be in your toothpaste. Your dentist's office is another good place to find topical applications of fluoride.
So, Should You Buy Fluoride Toothpaste?
- Children often swallow the toothpaste they use. They're tempted by the taste. They can easily get too much fluoride especially if your water supply is fluoridated.
- Even if people don't actually ingest fluoride, they can still absorb it through their gums in fluoridated toothpaste.
- Fluoride can contribute to dermatitis in sensitive people. They recommend that if a person has this, especially near the mouth, to stop using fluoridated toothpaste and see if the condition improves.
No-Fluoride Products
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4 Amway Glister Toothpaste 6.75 oz/ea Multi Action Fluoride NO SALES TAX !!
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Orajel toddler training toothpaste 2 oz safe if swallowed no-fluoride fruity
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Eco Dent Toothpowder ExtraBrite No Fluoride - 2 fl. oz.
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More About Fluoride
- Toothpaste - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
All about toothpaste. This site talks about the positives of fluoride and the negatives of it. It also talks about the safety of ingredients in drinking water when combined with toothpaste. - Scientists, Doctors and Researchers warn of fluoridated water dangers
- Why you should use fluoride-free toothpaste | Have a Namaste
Some more facts about fluoride. We are often told that fluoride is key in helping proper development in teeth, but it is linked to IQ deficiencies and more. - 10 Facts About Fluoride
The Fluoride Action Network shares 10 important facts about fluoride and water fluoridation.
Hubs About Fluoride Use
Why is Fluoride Bad For You? This Hub talks more about fluoride and its potentially toxic properties.
Risks of Fluoridated Water This hub gives lots of facts and history about fluoridation.
Fluoride: America's Drug of Choice Is fluoride really poison? Find out at this hub!
CommentsLoading...
nope dont use it, get the hippy suff
Tara - I have sensitive teeth, too. I try something called "oil pulling". I haven't written a hub about it, but I will. Thanks for stopping by. :)
Meg - I agree! I love Tom's toothpaste and sometimes I just make my own. Oooh! Another idea for a hub! Thanks! :D
hahaha! im very dispointed with hub pages, i want to write, thats it but oh so difficult, help? they wont let me pubblish it??
Part of the mass medication programs, use baking soda instead. The FDA say its a poison, so I stay away from it.
Meg - you want to write? I'm confused. But keep writing. :) Thanks for commenting.
rasta1 - I agree. Love baking soda! I use it for cleaning, brushing teeth, I use it to drink with apple cider vinegar, among other things.
Fluoride toothpaste is ok as long as you don't swallow it. And children should always be supervised while using it. The topical effect is far greater than ingesting it...as in a fluoridated water supply for instance.
Here in my part of New Zealand we have just successfully campaigned to have fluoride removed from the water supply. If you live in an area which fluoridates its water I would seriously look at starting a campaign to have it removed. Look up the work of Dr. Paul Connett, he is the world's leading authority on the dangers of fluoride exposure.
Right there with you, AngelTrader. I think if there wasn't fluoride in anything else, I might use it in toothpaste...and one of my best friends is from New Zealand - there's good people there! :)
Great hub. Very informative cclitgirl. My aunt lived to be 98 years old with her own teeth at the time of death. She used baking soda and salt for toothpaste all of her life.
Mljdgulley - wow! I've been using non-fluoride toothpaste, but after reading your comment, I might just switch to baking soda all together. That's great info. :)
I appreciate the info in this hub, but I guess the benefits of fluoride outweigh the risks for me. Voting this Up and Interesting.
alocsin - I still sometimes use fluoride, too. :) Thanks for stopping by and for the votes.
You really should look up the chemistry behind fluorine and why it's put into the water before you write articles like this.
It's not put into the water as a "medication." It's put into the water because it does a displacement reaction with the hydroxide ion in your tooth enamel. Remember in high school when you mixed baking soda with vinegar and a bubbly reaction happens? That's what happens every time your teeth encounter an acidic environment. The acid reacts with the enamel.
Replace the hydroxide ion with a fluorine ion and the enamel with be MUCH more resistant to the acidic environment because of fluorine's high electronegativity.
So, if you want tooth decay make sure you stop giving your teeth fluorine and make sure you drink lots of soda. Otherwise, you should realize that science is trying to help you, not some conspiratorial nonsense like subversive medication of an entire populace.
Richard - I loved chemistry class in high school. I loved physics and calculus class, too. I love to research and I loved researching this article. I don't condemn the use of fluoride, but knowing that many communities have attempted to get this out of their drinking water and knowing that many children I have seen in my life have those little white spots on their teeth prompted me to research this. Soo, my conclusion is that if there is a better "topical" way to use fluoride rather than ingesting it, then I'd rather do that. Thanks for stopping by.
tarajeyaram 5 months ago
Thank you for this awesome hub. I have used sensodyne once, but I am too sensitive to it. I will have to try the burt's bees. This is great information. Keep up the good work.