The Debate Over Fluoride.

This article will look into the ongoing debate of fluoride, and its findings will shock many, not only of Fluoride but also of tap water in general.

As a serious believer in Public Health, and a strong advocate for the right to be healthy, I am becoming more and more frustrated with the rates of illness in my locality. Wolverhampton has one of the highest levels of child mortality/morbidity, and high levels of diabetes, obesity, cancer and heart disease.

Naturally, certain important questions beg to be asked;

• Why are we all so ill?
• How and where did this eventual breakdown in health come from?
• Have we always been so ill, or is there some other reason that is degrading our health?
• Could it be the food, the air or perhaps the water?

There are so many factors that could be implicated in our mass-illness, and many we are aware of, but since we are over 70% water, the main question becomes, “is our water safe?” Are there ‘unknown’ agent(s) that could be deemed ‘harmful’, and are we perhaps unwittingly ingesting them in soluble form?

This article will look into the ongoing debate of fluoride, and its findings will shock many, not only of Fluoride but also of tap water in general.

Water in General.

The water used by Wolverhampton is supplied by Severn Trent, and they state that they have consistently reached 99.9% compliance with water quality standards since 1997. (1). Many would agree that UK’s water is probably grouped with the cleanest water supplies around the world, and who can disagree; the water is very clean and on most occasions it tastes good too. However, does compliance with water quality standards truly mean our water is safe?

According to Severn Trent it does (1). So how is it possible that in a recent study carried out by Pesticide Action Network UK, it was shown that our water supply contains levels of Atrazine - a weed killer that is being linked to ‘feminisation’ of mammals! The study points out that Atrazine can;

“retard amphibian growth and development and suppress the immune system, with implications for human health. (2).

If you consider that we bath, shower, cook and drink this same water supply, who, if anyone, is measuring the long-term effects of pollution in our bodies? It is known that the easiest way to get a molecule into our bodies is to ingest it, but that’s not taking into account what enters our bodies through our skin over a long period of time. How does Atrazine behave when diluted and applied to our skin during a shower; do we absorb it, if so how much, and does this absorbed pesticide accumulate, and where does it accumulate? In our brains, perhaps?

These questions are very important, and can be applied to all other chemicals in soluble form.

Apart from Atrazine what else is in our water supply that we know to be harmful?

Mind Suppressants.

How about Prozac? A study carried out by the Environment Agency alarmingly found levels of Prozac in the water, and went on to suggest that the precise quantity of Prozac in the nation's water supplies – worryingly - remains unknown!

According to an Observer article, Norman Baker, the Liberal Democrat's environment spokesman, said;

“…the revelations exposed a failing by the government on an important public health issue… This looks like a case of hidden mass medication upon the unsuspecting public,' Baker said. 'It is alarming that there is no monitoring of levels of Prozac and other pharmacy residues in our drinking water.' (3)

The findings do not support the idea that Prozac is being deliberately added to our water supply, but nonetheless it is present and this raises many questions.

The idea of mass medication through the water supply is not such a wild accusation, as history has shown us, it has been done before!

According to a growing number of research articles and professionals, the first known case of a known mind suppressant being added to the water supply was during the evil empire of the Nazis. You will not be encouraged to find out that this mind suppressant was Fluoride - which was ‘artificially’ added to drinking water to:

“sterilize humans and force the people in their concentration camps into calm submission” (4).

The claim of Fluoride as a mind suppressant, is backed up by several research studies into the effects of Fluoride on the brains of animals, and one study in particular points to Fluoride having a possible negative effect on the IQ of young children causing ‘subtle brain dysfunction’;

“…behavioural pattern disruption as found in this rat study can be indicative of a potential for motor dysfunction, IQ deficits and/or learning disabilities in humans." (5)

This is also mirrored by another study that claims

“…drinking water fluoride levels greater than 1.0 mg/L may adversely affect the development of children’s intelligence.” (6)

Could this be evidence of the deliberate dumbing down of people and population control? Prozac also contains Fluoride (7) – as do many drugs on the market – but what exactly is Fluoride? Its in our toothpaste, its added to tap water, and it occurs naturally in the earth so surely it must be safe for it to be used in so many ways?

Origins of Fluoride.

There are places in the world where, Fluoride has not been artificially added to the water, but has contaminated the water supply from naturally occurring Fluoride present in mineral form, deposited in rock layers deep within the earth.

The best case studies to review this sort of ‘contamination’ can be found in India (8) where Fluoride occurs naturally in certain areas, and when ‘bore holes are sunk to reach ground water - if sunken too deep - breach certain types of rock where Fluoride is present - contaminating the water supply and causing a whole host of Fluoride related illnesses.

This poses a simple question, if naturally occurring Fluoride, causes such damage to human health (8) how can artificially created Fluoride be good for us,

Where does the artificial Fluoride come from?

According to Myron J. Coplan in an article about Fluoride, she points out that;

“The fluoride added to 90% of drinking water is hydrofluoric acid which is a compound of fluorine that is a chemical by product of aluminium, steel, cement, phosphate, and nuclear weapons manufacturing (authors own emphasis).” (9)

The link between industry and Fluoride has been extensively covered in an excellent book by Christopher Bryson – the ‘Fluoride Deception’ (10) – which details the links with fluoride and the nuclear industry. On the website of the ‘Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) they state that;

“Fluorine and hydrogen fluoride are used to make certain chemical compounds. Hydrofluoric acid is used for etching glass. Other fluoride compounds are used in making steel, chemicals, ceramics, lubricants, dyes, plastics, and pesticides. Fluorides are often added to drinking water supplies and to a variety of dental products, including toothpaste and mouth rinses, to prevent dental cavities.” (11).

Is Fluoride bad for Us?

It may disturb you to learn that artificial Fluoride comes from heavy industry’s, but what evidence is there (apart from potential dumbing down) that makes it bad for us? According to ‘official’ sources the Fluoride added to the water is ‘safe’ when it remains in certain dilutions (0.7–1.2 parts per million (12)), where it is suggested that by ingesting Fluoride, it acts on the tooth enamel, making it stronger, and reduces the attack of acid that forms the cavities;

“…low levels of fluoride in the mouth gradually improve the strength of the tooth enamel and its ability to resist acid attack. (12)

However, whether this is true or not, many recognised professionals are consistently suggesting that Fluoride is highly toxic. Some even go so far as to suggest the benefits of Fluoride is ‘unscientific nonsense’(13).

Opponents of Fluoride maintain that even though teeth may become stronger, the chemical nature of Fluoride means once in the body at ‘un-safe’ levels it combines with the calcium in bones making them ‘brittle’;

“Excess fluoride, at the level considered beneficial to teeth, causes detrimental changes in the mineralization of bones. Fluoride replaces magnesium in bones, making them harder. This hardness is partly desirable in teeth, giving them extra defence against destructive cavity-causing bacteria. But excess fluoride combines with available calcium and together they leave the body, leaving less calcium for bone (tensile) strength and density. Thus bones become hard, in the sense of brittle, and at the same time there is deficient bone calcium (osteoporosis), which leads to easy fractures.” (14)

So Fluoride makes the bone stronger but more brittle! Extensive research has been carried out to see if there is a correlation between Fluoride and ‘bone fractures’, to see if Fluoride is causing an increase in such conditions.

In a presentation to Southampton Council, John Spottiswoode (15) notes ten studies since 1990 that have found an association between hip fracture and drinking water, with a concentration less than 1.2 ppm, which contradicts the suggestion of this concentration being safe! Add onto this the growing body of research that shows that Fluoride has been linked heavily to osteoporosis - including hip fractures (16), perhaps there is now consensus that Fluoride is bad for bones?

Not so, in a publication called the Health Briefing - a headline read;

“fluoride in water - less tooth decay, no increase in hip fractures. Published on behalf of Health Authorities responsible for Birmingham and the Black Country – an area that has been Fluoridated for over 40 years, it goes on to state - (and in bold italics!) “…three major studies which have recently been reported indicate no evidence of such a risk and, in two cases, suggest that the risk may actually be reduced.” (17)

However, it is not only the Fluoride’s effect on the bones that has caused controversy. There is growing recognised research (18) that shows there is a link between fluoride and the thyroid mechanism. It is suggested that Fluoride disturbs its ability to regulate the metabolism, by acting directly on Iodine, which is crucial for optimum thyroid control. Reduced thyroid activity leads to a condition called Hypothyroidism;

“The illness is insidious in its onset and progression. People become tired, cold, overweight, depressed, constipated; they suffer arthritis, hair loss, infertility, atherosclerosis and chronic illness (18).”

However, it is suggested that not only Iodine is affected! Fluoride is implicated in the direct disruption of many key enzymes (19), where in particular Fluoride combines with a compound such as amide (essential for enzyme production), critically disrupting the body’s ability to create new enzymes, with serious health implications (18). One article (20) in particular provides overwhelming evidence to show that this enzyme disruption also includes Insulin! Does this mean that Fluoride has a causal link with Diabetes?

Fluoride and Diabetes.

To further complicate the issue, there is evidence to suggest that if you already have diabetes, the body’s ability to excrete Fluoride is greatly reduced, leading to increased Fluoride toxicity in the body, which in turn again increases a host of Fluoride related illnesses. (21)

Bearing this in mind, that the West Midlands as a whole has 100% Fluoridation, and it is estimated that Wolverhampton has around 12,000 diabetes cases (22); what effect is Fluoride having on these people?

In a study carried out in 1998 Dr Peter Mansfield, Director of the Templegarth Trust, tested over 200 volunteers from the fluoridated West Midlands;

“He found that 60% of them were ingesting up to four times the amount of fluoride considered by the government to be safe. He sent the results to the very highest levels at the Department of Health - and was ignored. But leading fluoride promoters have attacked him. He commented: "They have no results of their own and are not willing to replicate my tests. It is obvious that the symptoms of joint pain and stiffness suffered by many of these volunteers are mis-diagnosed. This is most serious negligence." (23).

Could this be why there is so much illness in Wolverhampton? Other known illnesses related to Fluoride include; bone (Skeletal Fluorosis), osteosarcoma (bone cancer), central nervous system and the brain damage, pineal gland damage, Reproductive effects, hypersensitivity reactions, and genetic damage. (15).

If there are so many known reactions to Fluoride, one wonders ‘how it got passed for public consumption’?

In his book ‘The Fluoride Deception’, Christopher Bryson suggests that dubious scientists, Government spin and the military industrial complex lied and transformed Fluoride from a highly toxic chemical to a safe health supplement. It was done in part to ensure that expensive legal actions were curtailed from workers and communities poisoned by industrial fluoride emissions, and to also create a market to dispose of this industrial waste! More information can found at Fluoride Action Network website (24), which has been set up to ‘broaden public awareness’ about Fluoride.

Despite what seems to be an overload of reasons against Fluoridation, the Government still funds a society that has been set up to specifically market the ‘alleged benefits’ of Fluoride – The British Fluoridation Society (BFS), who receive considerable funds annually.

In their own document (12) the BFS maintain that Fluoridation reduces tooth decay and has no harmful side effects suggesting that dental fluorosis is a ‘cosmetic’ problem, which goes against all the very qualified voices suggesting it is the first signs of Fluoride poisoning. (9,16,23).

The BFS admits that;

“Severe tooth decay remains a problem among young children in disadvantaged communities.” (12).

This they say justifies the ‘targeting’ of Fluoride into the most poor communities, where children are least likely to have good dental hygiene, and consume more sugar. And yet the BFS acknowledge that;

“While decay levels have fallen in both fluoridated and non-fluoridated communities in recent years, inequalities in dental health remain wide.” (12)

How can Fluoridating water lead to a reduction in tooth decay if you live in a non-fluoridated community? Could this be suggesting that to reduce tooth decay, you must improve dental hygiene in general instead of putting Fluoride in the water? Would the parents agree to this ‘mass medication’ if they knew of the many illnesses strongly linked to Fluoride?

Of Fluorides being linked to other illnesses the BFS go on to state;

“Studies and independent reviews of the relevant medical and scientific literature over many years have consistently failed to find evidence that water fluoridation has any effect on the health of the body other than reducing tooth decay.” (12).

The above statement could be perceived as being seriously inaccurate and biased, and for whatever reason, it is becoming clear that scientific data that refutes the above statement has not been included (or ignored).

Fluoride Medication.

If we are told (which we are) that Fluoride is added to ‘prevent illness’ (tooth decay) then surely this is now a form of mass medication, and according to North and Midlands Against Fluoridation (NAMAF), the new EU legislation has made it illegal to medicate via the water supply;

“All ingestible substances are either foods or medicines; when fluoride - in ANY form - is added to water with the intent to medicate, then that water becomes a medicine, and must comply with the regulations relating to the registration, licensing, sale and administration of medicines.” (25)

Isn’t it right that if you suffer from an illness, such as tooth decay, it is your responsibility to seek medication if it’s needed? Mass medicating the water supply does seem extreme!

This raises fundamental personal and ethical concerns. If you do not need the Fluoride, and you have excellent levels of personal dental hygiene, why should you accept to have it in your water, particularly when it has been shown to be linked to so many illnesses? On the subject of whether Fluoridation is ethical, the BFS suggest that:

“Fluoride-free drinking water is not a basic human right but a question of individual preference. However, in a society where people come together for mutual benefit, such personal preferences must be balanced against the common good – particularly when the main beneficiaries are children as they are least able to help themselves.” (12)

Every reader will agree that the children must be protected from anything that is even suspected of being harmful, which is the key to this whole debate, why haven’t people been more widely informed of the dangers of Fluoride? How do you know something is suspected of causing harm if nobody tells you? Even worse, what if you are continually told this something is good for you?

Fluoride and Public Health Education.

The problem seems to be that in the UK, after nearly 40 years of ‘Fluoride is good for you’, the public are totally unaware that there is growing concern over Fluoride - backed by scientifically proven data. The public are without the relevant information to make a truly informed decision to Fluoridate water or not.

There is also a problem with the public making their own decisions about what is or isn’t good for them. For the last few decades this ‘right’ has been continually eroded by the state’s insistence that all decisions should be made by ‘qualified professionals’, which on the face of it, seems obvious, but as a result this has led to decisions being made without public involvement. This is a massive failure that has led to agendas being almost totally controlled by corporate interests, which in part has been identified with the establishment of the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health (CPPIH) (26). It is hoped that this new commission will ensure that ‘informed’ people back ‘health’ decisions or challenge them when and where they need to be.

However there still remains a flaw in the CPPIH remit. How can ‘people’ become informed if the information is not reaching them? Not every one has the time or inclination to sit for hours doing up-to-date research, not least on Fluoride. This has caused a major imbalance of information that needs to be addressed by the community and Government at many levels.

Solutions:

If you didn’t think Fluoride was an issue before reading this article, maybe now you do, but like many in the community, you wonder what can be done? There are many solutions, but none are easy or straightforward unless, you have a good level of involvement with local government activities, (which more or less excludes everyone), and are willing to spend hundreds on a special filter system or bottled water!

Set up your own Fluoride Group

Work together as a group to set up discussion evenings, where you can invite public speakers from opposing sides of the debate, as this is about educating each other. Care must be taken not to allow any events to become shouting matches, instead display the information in factual terms with opportunities for the audience to put questions to the speakers.

If this is successful, join your group to other groups in your region and push for a ‘public referendum’ to ensure that Fluoride is taken out of the water supply for good. Use the same method to discuss other pollutants such as Prozac and Atrazine, and work together to find a solution, which could include more regular checks of the water supply. Once Fluoride is banned from tap water, strategies can be set up to address the levels of Fluoride added to salt, fast food products, wines, beers, and baby food.

Join public forums.

The Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health (CPPIH) have been set up to make sure the public is involved in decision making about health and health services in England. “There are 572 Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) Forums, one for each NHS Trust in England. They are working with all sectors of the community and finding out what people really think about health in their local areas.” (26). You could join CPPIH, to lobby and support the setting up of an organisation that can ‘independently review’ all of the data on fluoride, including ways of disseminating its findings widely to the people. There needs to be a wide reaching uncensored public debate, to educate each other and then to come to a final conclusion one way or the other.

Install Filters.

If you can’t wait for the very slow cogs of government to turn, there are other ways of reducing the level of Fluoride in your drinking water. You could install a ‘reverse osmosis water filter system’, however this is costly and not a realistic option for many, particularly for those already seen as ‘underprivileged’. Unsympathetically, the Government suggest if you object to Fluoride and cannot afford a filter system, use bottled water instead! (27).

Support a local dental hygiene campaign.

How much would it cost the NHS to give away free toothbrushes, (as they did in my primary school), and reinforce the need for children and parents to ensure that after eating ‘sweet’ foods they should brush their teeth. This alone would reduce the need for visits to the dentist and fluoride. Could this be the reason it is not done?

If you choose to support a campaign, it is important that you do not agree to market ‘Fluoride toothpastes’, instead opt to concentrate only on the habit of brushing twice a day, and after eating sugary foods using ‘un-fluoridated’ toothpastes.

The Author is the Director of Healthy Awareness Ltd, and is a Freelance Researcher, Project Manager and Specialist Health Speaker.

>References:

1. http://www.stwater.co.uk/upload/pdf/waterquality05.pdf

2. Atrazine in Drinking Water. (05/12/2005)

http://www.naturalmatters.net/newsview.asp?news=779

3. Stay calm everyone, there's Prozac in the drinking water. Mark Townsend Sunday August 8, 2004 The Observer. http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1278760,00.html

4. The Crime and Punishment of I.G. Farben by Joseph Borkin.. (June 1, 1978)

5. Neurotoxicity of fluoride, Fluoride, 1996, 29:2, 57-58 (Editorial by AWB and JC). Fluoride's Neurological Effects: studies show there may be grave implications for
Alzheimers, Dementia, Attention Deficit Disorder, reduced IQ in children http://www.fluoridation.com/brain.htm

6. Fluoride Vol. 36 No. 2 84-94. Q Xiang etal, 2003. Research Report: Effect of fluoride in drinking water on children’s intelligence.

7. http://www.antidepressantsfacts.com/2003-08-Prozac-Paxil-Fluorophenyl.htm

8. Skeletal fluorosis: Recent reports from India

http://www.fluoridealert.org/fluorosis-india.htm

9. Is Fluoride Really As Safe As You Are Told? Myron J. Coplan http://www.mercola.com/2002/feb/2/fluoride_safety.htm

10. The Fluoride Deception by Christopher Bryson. http://www.fluoridealert.org/fluoride-deception.htm

11. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts11.html

12. One in a Million - the facts about water fluoridation. 2nd edition. Published by:

The British Fluoridation Society, http://www.bfsweb.org/onemillion.html

13. Fluoridation of our water is "dangerous unscientific nonsense" 21/11/2005

http://www.naturalmatters.net/newsview.asp?news=671

14. Fluoride, Teeth, and Bones By Linda F. Palmer, DC. Excerpted from Chapter 9 -- Baby’s Nutritional Beginnings -- from the book, Baby Matters, What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Caring for Your Baby (Lucky Press)

http://www.natural-family.com/3bnut-38-flouride-teeth-bones.htm

15. Fluoride The True Science – Southampton Health Scrutiny Panel Compiled and designed by J. Spottiswoode, 2005

http://www.foodcures.net/Nutrition/Water_fluor.php

16. http://www.fluoridedebate.com/debate.html

17. Health Briefing. Published by West Midlands NHS Health Authorities. Autumn 2000.

18. The Effects of Fluoride on the Thyroid Gland. 21/09/2005. By Dr Barry Durrant-Peatfield MBBS LRCP MRCS. Medical Advisor to Thyroid UK
http://www.naturalmatters.net/article.asp?article=393&cat=46

19. Fluoride and Intelligence. Fluoride Vol. 33 No. 2 49-52 2000 Editorial 49.

20. Fluoride -The Battle of Darkness & Light by Mary Sparrowdancer. 2003 http://www.rense.com/general45/bll.htm

21. Fluoride and Diabetes. http://www.fluoridedebate.com/question31.html

22. Diabetes - What is it? http://www.wolverhamptondiabetescare.org.uk/03leaflets/01diabetes.htm

23. TRUTH DECAY. Challenging New Labour's propaganda on water fluoridation. Spencer Fitz-Gibbon for the Green Party of England & Wales. Second edition, revised August 2003

24. http://www.fluoridealert.org/

25. Fluoridation in UK is now illegal. 02/11/2005

http://www.naturalmatters.net/newsview.asp?news=562

26. http://www.cppih.org/

27. Plans for fluoride 'in all water'. Published: 2003/05/12 07:30:40 GMT http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk/3018313.stm

Tags: fluoride, government, nazi, osteosarcoma, poison, pure water, reverse osmosis