Too much flouride causes tooth decay

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Dentists Cause CavitiesBy Sally Stridehttp://www.mercola.com/2001/sep/26/dentists_cause_cavities.htm

 

American children consume so much fluoride that it may actually causerather then prevent tooth decay.

 

A new study shows that, otherwise fluoride-free, South African children whodrink naturally fluoridated water, at 3 parts per million (ppm), have moretooth decay than South African children drinking much lower concentrations,0.48 PPM and 0.19 PPM fluoride, according to a September 2001 InternationalJournal of Pediatric Dentistry.

 

"Significantly more children had decayed teeth in the high fluoride areathan in the other two areas," write authors Grobler, et al.

 

"The results suggest a positive association between high fluoride levels inthe drinking water and dental caries (cavities)," they conclude. Toothdecay rates ranged from 1.54 drilled, missing or filled teeth (DMFT) in thelow fluoride areas to 1.98 DMFT in the high fluoride area.

 

With virtually no dental care or fluoride therapy, these South Africanchildren have less tooth decay than fluoride-saturated American children.

 

By comparison, American 12- to 18-year olds, had 3.08 DMFT, according tothe Journal of the American Dental Association. African American childrenhave even higher rates. Americans spent 56 billion dollars on dental carein 1999 - up 5.6% from 1998.

 

Neglecting poor diet, organized dentistry prescribes more and morefluoride, as the only antidote for cavities, in more and obscure wayswithout concern for individuals' total fluoride intake.

 

Sadly, most dentists refuse to actually treat America's poorest who haveover twice the decay rate as the non-poor. As a result, tooth decay is ofepidemic proportions in the US poor and minority populations at the sametime fluoride overdose, dental fluorosis, is growing in incidence and severity.

 

Cavities increase in people with severe fluorosis according to the dentaltextbook, "Dentistry, Dental Practice and the Community," by Burt andEklund. But few practicing dentists seem to know this.

 

Burt and Eklund explain that fluoride concentrations in drinking water,form a J-shaped curve. With increasing fluoride levels, cavity experiencediminishes to a certain point and then starts to rise again.

 

The true relationship between water fluoride levels and dental decay is theJ-shaped curve, with the turning point in the J being something between 3and 4 times the optimal level, they write. Studies show many Americanchildren already exceed this level.

 

Besides the better known fluoridated dental products, American children areexposed to artificially and naturally fluoridated water, and the foods andbeverages made with that water then sold in non-fluoridated areas as well.Some dental products like cements, filling and bonding materials, arelittle-known fluoride sources

 

Medicines, ocean fish, tea, soy baby formulas, fruit juices andmechanically deboned meat products, and even soda are fluoride sources mostdentists overlook. Air pollution, ocean mist, inhaled shower and humidifiersteam add to a body's fluoride burden, as does fluoride containingpesticide residues on fruits, vegetables and grains.

 

Look Ma! More Cavities!!

 

"Here in Toronto we've been fluoridating for 37 years. Yet Vancouver, whichhas never fluoridated, has a cavity rate lower than Toronto's," says HardyLimeback, head of the Department of Preventive Dentistry, University of Toronto

 

Despite decades of fluoridation, Connecticut, New York City, and Bostonreport oral health care crises.

 

Ireland is the only country in Europe to fluoridate most of its population(73%). Yet, Ireland ranks 6th in Europe in dental decay behind 4 countriesthat don't fluoridate and the 10% fluoridated UK. And non-fluoridatedNorwegians, reportedly, enjoy good dental health.

 

Back here in America, after over 50 years of fluoridation and scrutiny,more severe fluorosis and more children's tooth decay occurs in fluoridatedNewburgh, New York, than in never-fluoridated Kingston, New York, accordingto the NYS Department of Health.

 

Based on thirty years of study on nearly half a million children, Teotiaand Teotia report "Our findings indicate that dental caries was caused byhigh fluoride and low dietary calcium intakes, separately and through theirinteractions," according to the journal, Fluoride.

 

In fact, according to the US Centers for Disease Control "The prevalence ofdental caries in a population is not inversely related to the concentrationof fluoride in enamel, and a higher concentration of enamel fluoride is notnecessarily more efficacious in preventing dental caries."

 

So what good is fluoride, after all?

 

Fluoridation gave organized dentistry long-desired but little earnedcredibility and respect in the 1950's. Dentists are still at the forefrontof virtually every fluoridation initiative across the country. Andfluoridation has given them political viability, according to theirjournals. But, it seems fluoride may only be giving our children morecavities.

 

Suite 101 September 14, 2001