Page 1 of 1

flouride in water

Posted: Sun Mar 19, 2006 10:33 pm
by bracesmom
How many of you have fluoride in your tap water? Just curious.

Posted: Sun Mar 19, 2006 10:41 pm
by DizzyKitty
We had flouride in our water system when I was growing up (coastal town in Oregon). I was always told that is why my teeth were so healthy despite my avoidance of dentists later in life (until now, of course).

Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 8:27 am
by Leslie022
Hmm...I assume I do. I thought everyone in the US had fluoride in their tap water unless they were on a well....I don't know.

Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 10:27 am
by jcdamon3
There are some places that do and some don't. It went up on our ballot here in CA some years ago and we voted it down. I voted NO!

Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 2:48 pm
by bracesmom
My understanding is fluoride can be more damaging to younger kids who take too much. My dentist told me if I'd had floride tablets or in my water, I wouldn't have the dental issue's I've had.

We have it in our water here but some areas only very recently got it in their city water.

Posted: Tue Mar 21, 2006 12:54 am
by LizzyG
All of the UK has fluoride in tap water.

Posted: Tue Mar 21, 2006 8:19 am
by calley03
http://www.fluoridealert.org/fluoridation.htm

The above site is a site we researched in biology this semester. This site is against flouride and they have some pretty good points. In our area in Missouri we do not have fluoride in our water. The water district I live in serves most of our town of 200 people, and they are very small with little funding. They can only pay somone to be in our office 3 hours a day, and we all have to read our own meters and figure our own bills. I don't see our community ever getting fluoride in our water.

Posted: Tue Mar 21, 2006 12:56 pm
by bracesmom
Calley, That is so interesting.

I found another sourse that states the pro's and cons:
http://health.gov/environment/ReviewofFluoride/

In looking on our water bill, it states we have "1PPM fluoride added to water" I am not sure how that compares with other places. Every dentist I've had including my son's pediatrician, raves about fluoride in the water. So, I'm a bit confused now where I stand. It will be good for me to continue to research though.

Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 2:56 pm
by Huon
Sydney and Hobart, in Australia have fluoride in the water supply, as do many of the smaller towns. Ours is a very small community and the water has fluoride. I saw the change in dental health of the children I was teaching in the 60s, when it was introduced and it was wonderful.
A few people are opposed to it but I haven't heard of any ill effects One Hobart resident was so incensed that he took his containers up Mount Wellington, each week and filled them from a spring, there. It turned out that the natural fluoride content of the spring water was higher than that in the fluoridated tap water.
Huon

Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 6:43 pm
by bracesmom
That is so interesting Huon.

I still have to read the research provided. I wonder how bad fluoride really is taken internally? It seems one thing can cause cancer one day and be good for you the next. Our air appearently isn't safe anymore. So where do we draw the line?

Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 9:05 pm
by Huon
Bracesmom.
An excess of fluoride can certainly be harmful. Mottling of the teeth is an early sign. People who work in very hot conditions, where they drink very large quantities of water, are advised to drink demineralised water to avoid an overdose and children who delight in swallowing their toothpaste, should use a low fluoride formulation but should certainly be using some.
Many people, in Australia, are using tankwater and they are strongly advised to give their children fluoride tablets to prevent tooth decay.
Huon

Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 11:19 pm
by bracesmom
Thank you Huon, that makes sense.