Deep inside, I’m still a dentist. At the turn of the century, I laid my drill down to embark upon a new career in holistic nutrition and school food advocacy. Before that, I drilled, filled and billed in private practice for over 13 years.
During the 4 long years of dental school, one point was hammered into our skulls: Hal Huggins was a quack! Hal was a Colorado dentist who was anti-fluoride, anti-amalgam and concerned about root canals. When you’re in dental school, much like medical school, you study hard, sleep little and spit out the right answers on the board exams. I’m taking the time to explain this so that you understand why your dentist isn’t up on the latest information about fluoride. Your dentist did well on those board exams and doesn’t often question what he or she has been taught. The same thing happens in medical school with vaccine questions. Medical and dental schools are highly competitive, high stress environments, you don’t ask questions.
Here’s the theory on how systemic fluoride supposedly works. During the ages of 1-7 when the adult teeth are being formed, a higher level of fluoridated water will build teeth that are more resistant to decay. There is no benefit in drinking fluoridated water before 1 year and beyond 7 years. So, we are fluoridating an entire population for the alleged benefit of those who are ages 1-7. Not very ethical, to medicate an entire population for the supposed benefit of a small number, don’t you think?
The American Dental Association, a big pro-fluoride lobby group, acknowledges that fluoridated water is not recommended for babies ages 0-12 months. I’ll be writing more about this topic in another post.
Here’s the real deal on fluoride that your dentist has never taken the time to question.
Fluoridated water has never been proven to actually decrease tooth decay.
Fluoridated water was never approved by the FDA. It was grandfathered in, it was never safety tested for ingestion in human or animal studies.
Fluoride is hazardous to your health. It is a cumulative poison that accumulates in bone over the years. The list of health issues connected to fluoride ingestion is long, visit the Fluoride Action Network to see what I’m talking about.
Like everyone else, in dental school, I didn’t ask questions about fluoride. Leter, when I was a dentist in private practice, I was admittedly on the fence about fluoride. It was only when my youngest daughter was born with congenital hypothyroidism that I started to do my own homework on the issue. Based on the research I’ve done, I’m convinced that fluoride in municipal water systems offers no real benefit and is hazardous to our health.
I’ll be writing more blog posts about fluoride in the days to come. Stay tuned
