Re: Please summarize the recent Scientific American article on fluoride

Matt wrote:
Scientific American provides an intro to the article for free, but the whole article is not online. Could somebody with access to the article give a detailed summary of all the major points? I thank you and the unborn millions thank you. :-)



I should state my own bias, which is that Scientific American overall seems somewhat "dumbed down" recently compared to what it was fairly recently (I haven't been a regular reader in several years, but have subscribed on and off since the mid-1960s.
Having said that, I think this article gives an excellent overview of the current state of thinking about fluoride and fluoridation.
The major points are that while the consensus is that fluoride historically has made a major impact on the incidence of tooth decay. However, fluoride has become so ubiquitous in the environment that current guidelines for fluoridation and supplementation may need re-evaluation. There are many sources of fluoride in the environment, and the sum total of these sources is difficult to determine, but is likely to exceed what were considered safe levels in the past. As a result of multiple sources of fluoride in the environment, one no longer sees the caries reduction from water fluoridation that were seen in the past.
The mechanisms by which fluoride reduces tooth decay are summarized. The toxicology is not (with the exception of fluorosis and skeletal effects), but otherpossible toxic effects are reviewed--osteosarcoma, neurologic and endocrine (thyroid) effects. The evidence for these is spottier, but given the increasing chances that significant populations are receiving more than the recommended dose, these need to be looked into further.

I see little or nothing to criticize in this article--I think it's a good overview of the issues for a general reading audience.

Steve
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Relevant Pages

  • Fluoridation Opposition: Scientific, Respectable & Growing
    ... Congress to stop water fluoridation until Congressional hearings are ... the Burlington Board of Health recommended that Burlington ... -- The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, ... Disease] should be notified of the potential risk of fluoride ...
    (sci.med.dentistry)
  • Re: Floride Question
    ... Tooth decay is simply another symptom of a bad diet. ... Fluoride incorporates into enamel topically only. ... required for sound teeth. ... > so sugar on his teeth wasn't an issue. ...
    (misc.kids)
  • Re: Dental psychology: how fluoride prevents caries
    ... >>with dental fluoride treamtents and fluoride supplements dispensed ... Around the same time water fuoridation began, ... fotified with vitamin D to protect against rickets. ... rickets is tooth decay. ...
    (sci.med)
  • Re: Dental psychology: how fluoride prevents caries
    ... >>with dental fluoride treamtents and fluoride supplements dispensed ... Around the same time water fuoridation began, ... fotified with vitamin D to protect against rickets. ... rickets is tooth decay. ...
    (sci.med.dentistry)
  • Re: Fluoride can reverse tooth decay?
    ... Fluoride prevents and can even reverse tooth decay. ... systems has access to water fluoridated at approximately 1 part ... fluoride per million parts water - the optimal level for preventing ... Fluoride was a teeth damaging natural water pollutant way before it was ...
    (sci.med.dentistry)