Citizens for Safe Water Metro Moncton

In addition to the questionable ethics of adding a drug to public water, fluoride’s capacity for chronic adverse effects is at the heart of the water fluoridation debate.

North American Dental & Public Health Associations admit that at certain rates of exposure, fluoride can cause acute adverse health effects to the brain, thyroid gland, stomach, kidneys, skeletal connective tissue, bones, as well as the colour, strength and shape of teeth.

The 60 year fluoridation debate is not about fluoride’s capacity for acute adverse effects. The debate is about fluoride’s capacity for chronic (long term) adverse effects.

In other words the debate is about how little daily exposure to fluoride can cause or contribute to chronic (long term) adverse health effects. 

Educated safe water advocates who oppose public water fluoridation point out that:

• People of sound mind have the right to choose which drugs they & their children will use. The right to choose is especially important when it comes to controversial drugs & medical interventions.
  ***Note: many people choose to not even use fluoridated toothpaste which exposes people to less fluoride than fluoridated water.
  ***Even school fluoride rinse programs require parents to give their consent before their child participates. School fluoride rinses also monitor dosage & because the rinse is spat out children are exposed to less fluoride than daily consumption of fluoridated water.

• Even if fluoride's effects weren't controversial, adding any drug to public water does not allow for dosage control or the right to consent.

• People vary significantly in the amount of water they drink & cook with. Also published research shows that people living in non fluoridated regions are often getting too much fluoride just from their dental products & processed foods & drinks.

• People vary in their body mass and overall susceptibility to absorb fluoride into tissues, glands and organs.
   

• *** Fluoride absorption from toothpastes, mouthwashes, conventionally grown and especially processed foods and drinks now result in many children and adults exceeding the daily fluoride limits set by the associations promoting water fluoridation.
   

• *** Fluoride's chronic adverse effects can develop slowly over years, & in some cases, decades & the proper toxicity & randomized human control studies have never been done.
   

• *** According to the research, those most susceptible are bottle fed babies who's formula is mixed with fluoridated water, children and adults deficient in iodine, children and adults with kidney disease, children and adults who consume a lot of conventionally grown and especially processed foods and drinks. Teas, especially bottled ice teas, certain boxed cereals, mechanically deboned chicken are exceptionally high in fluoride averaging 7 to 9 times more fluoride than fluoridated water.