In other posts and videos TBWF has already discussed the dangers of fluoridation of public drinking water. Yet it not only continues, but also gains ground in some communities. That is despite the research that shows that fluoride accumulates in the pineal, particularly of infants and small children. Fluoride impacts growth, sexual maturation, and other health issues. So why do they use it?

Keep in mind that the original studies on fluoridation that concluded it is beneficial for tooth decay prevention were funded by the aluminum industry. Why is that? Why would they possibly want to fund such a study? Could it be that they were looking for an alternative to disposing of fluoride, a byproduct of aluminum production, that would make a profit instead of being a cost? Hmmm….

Aluminum continues to be produced. Could the aluminum industry be continuing to exercise their influence in the interest of their profit motive… maybe even contributing to a few select lawmakers?

Look For the New Article on The History of Fluoridatione

The latest research reveals fluoride in drinking water to be a neurotoxin. It contributes to learning disabilities in children, including hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder. It also contributes to lower IQ, because the compounds used to fluoridate water cause the body to increase its uptake of lead through the gut. It is fairly conclusive that chronic intake increases the risk of cancer, affects the immune system, and hastens the aging process.

Yet, for 55 years, fluoride has been added to the water supply in many communities to help prevent tooth decay. But after all this time, surprising new research is raising such serious doubts about its safety that entire communities are abandoning the practice and many of the world’s best scientists are urgently calling for change. As one doctor aptly stated:

“No physician in his right mind would prescribe for a person he has never met, whose medical history he does not know, a substance known to be extremely toxic in low doses, with the intention of creating bodily change, with the advice: ‘Take as much as you like for the rest of your life because some children suffer from tooth decay.’ It is a preposterous notion.”

Yet it is the opinion of mainstream dentistry is that the best protection against dental cavities is achieved if fluoridation is available from birth (Ripa, 1993). The current view of how fluoride works to prevent the development of dental  cavities is the maintenance of high fluoride levels in the oral environment (Burt, 1995). Therefore, in order to obtain the maximum reduction of dental cavities, the plasma-fluoride levels are increased during infancy and early childhood. Fluoride is now introduced at a much earlier stage of human development than ever before and consequently alters the normal fluoride-pharmacokinetics in infants. The extensive use of fluorides in dentistry for the prevention of cavities has caused an unprecedented increase in plasma-fluoride levels in infants and young children.

And despite the endorsements of the dental profession , the prophylactic use of fluoride in dentistry has been a controversial subject for decades; not only for its potential dangers, but whether it even prevents cavities. But can the normal fluoride-intake to infants be dramatically increased safely? The safety of the use of fluorides ultimately rests on the assumption that the developing dental enamel is drawing all of the fluoride circulating in the blood. Studies suggest that the pinealocytes may be as susceptible to fluoride as the developing tooth enamel.

Effects of Fluoride On The Brain and Pineal Gland

In the1990s, it was discovered that the pineal gland is a major site of fluoride accumulation within the body - with higher concentrations of fluoride than that found in either teeth or bone. Thanks to the meticulous research of Dr. Jennifer  Lukefrom the University of Surrey in England – we now know the pineal gland is the primary target of fluoride accumulation within the body.

The pineal gland, which is often referred to as the seat of the soul,  is a small gland located between the two hemispheres, or anatomical center of the brain. Though seated close to the brain, the human pineal  sits outside the blood-brain barrier, the protective shield around the brain. The pineal is an integral part of the central nervous system (CNS) that regulates the production of the hormone melatonin.

Though scientists researching the pineal have not completely figured out how the pineal gland performs its tasks in the brain, they do know that reduction in concentration of the hormone melatonin in blood plasma signals functional disturbances. One of the greatest areas of concern is that fluoride affects the production of melatonin. Science is not yet sure exactly how fluoride lessens the production of melatonin.  It may interfere with the complex series of enzymatic reactions within the pineal that convert the essential amino acid, tryptophan, to a whole family of indoles and the production of the key hormone melatonin.

Dr Luke’s animal studies of pineal function went on to prove that fluoride is associated with depressed pineal melatonin synthesis and an accelerated onset of sexual maturation in the females and lower weight testes in the males. Her results strengthen the hypothesis that the pineal has a definite role in the timing of the onset of puberty and reproduction.

Recent information on the role of the pineal organ in humans now suggests that any agent that affects pineal function could affect human health in a variety of ways in addition to its role in sexual maturation, such as calcium metabolism, parathyroid function and susceptibility to postmenopausal osteoporosis, cancer, psychiatric diseases and to the process of aging.

The fact that fluoride’s impact on the pineal gland was never studied, or even considered, before the 1990s, highlights a major gap in knowledge underlying the current policies on fluoride and health. In fact up until the 1990s, no research had ever been conducted to determine the impact of fluoride on the pineal gland .

The Dangers of Fluoride in Infants and Children

With the dangers of fluoride to the brain and nervous system, and the previous research that shows fluoride ingestion links to bone cancer and to hyperthyroidism (symptoms include weight gain, muscle and joint pain, fatigue, depression, high cholesterol, and heart disease), mothers should have serious concern for fluoride in infants and children.

It is interesting to note that is the fact that normal daily fluoride intake of breast-fed infants is negligible (less than 0.01 mg), because human breast milk contains merely a trace of fluoride, regardless of the fluoride intake to the nursing mother. The exact reasons for the limited transfer of fluroide from plasma to breast milk are unknown, but it has been suggested that the physiological plasma-milk barrier actively seeks to protect the newborn human from the toxic effects of fluoride.

This is confirmed in cow’s milk, which also contains low  levels of fluoride, even when fluoride is added to the cow’s food or drinking water. Additionally it has been noted that during breastfeeding, more fluroide is excreted in the urine than is ingested in the diet, and that fluoride deposited in fetal bone during pregnancy is mobilized and released into the extracellular fluids and subsequently excreted into urine. Therefore, early human development has always occurred in a virtually fluoride-free milieu, even in the high water fluoridation areas. This phenomenon in nature lasts until the age of weaning and the introduction of solid foods. This fact clearly establishes the potential danger of bottle-feeding where unfiltered water from fluoridated areas is being used in the reconstitution of the formula.

Iit has been noted that the infants being fed reconstituted powdered formula using fluoridated water retain more than 50% of the ingested fluoride dose in their mineralizing tissues which includes the pineal. If fluoride accumulates in the pineal gland during early childhood, it could affect pineal indole metabolism in much the same way that high local concentrations of fluoride in enamel organ and bone affect the correct metabolism of ameloblasts and osteoblasts for proper bone development.

Children are now exposed to more fluoride than ever before. Fluorides are the cornerstone of all cavity preventative programs. The substantial reduction in the incidence of dental cavities the western world over the past fifty years has been largely attributed to the access to fluoridated water supplies and the increased exposure to fluoride in dental products. That is the basis for fluoridation of water as an important public health measure. It is endorsed by the WHO, the European Union directives, the Royal College of Physicians, the Royal College of General Practitioners, the BMA, and the medical and dental professions (Samuels, 1993).

The Danger of Fluoride As We Age

Our exposure to fluoride continues through childhood. That includes exposure through juices, drinks, toothpastes and a whole variety of processed foods, such as cereals that use fluoridated water in their processing.  The pineal gland accumulates fluoride at an earlier age than in previous decades. Abnormally high local concentration of fluoride within the pineal affects its ability to synthesize sufficient melatonin, which is normally at its highest production levels during early childhood.

The problem doesn’t go away after childhood. In fact, the soft tissue of the aged pineal contains more fluoride than that found in any other normal soft tissue in the body, And when the mean fluoride concentration in the hard, mineralized or calcified part of the of the pineal was evaluated, it was equivalent to that in dangerously fluorosed bone, meaning  bones that are experiencing fluoride poisoning, or fluorosis. When that happens, the bones are actually falling apart. That means that in those exposed to fluoride, the pineal gland contains the highest fluoride concentration in the body. The question is how this impacts melatonin in aging people where melatonin serves to provide healthy regenerative sleep, proper bone formation, protection from cell damage, etc…

And there are dangers involving other hormones. There is now the understanding that fluoride may also affect the synthesis of melatonin precursors, such as serotonin, which is an essential hormone whose role in the body is extremely complex; involved in everything from metabolism and sleep, to proper growth and bone formation, liver repair and mood.

How we are exposed to fluoride

The exposure to fluoride in fresh food is still low. Fresh, unprepared vegetables, fruits, pulses, roots, nuts, etc., rarely contain more than 0.2 to 0.3 mg F/kg (WHO, 1984). Most plant species have a limited capacity to absorb fluoride from the soil, even when fluoride-containing fertilizers are applied (Davison, 1984). The flesh of meat, poultry and fish, which are free from bone, contain low only levels of fluoride, because virtually all fluoride in animals occurs in their bones and teeth. So keep that in mind when you use bones for soup, etc…unless you know that the animals are drinking well water. The skin and bones of tinned salmon and sardines can contain 8 and 500 mg F/kg respectively because the fish are exposed to relatively high levels of fluoride. So restrict your consumption of these fish. The greatest exposure to fluoride is in the water we drink.

Fluoride in drinking water

All of this controversy surrounding the use of fluoride in dentistry and our municipal water, certainly should solidify our concern surrounding the consumption of fluoride in our daily drinking water and motivate us to get the fluoride out. This is one area of protection that we can give ourselves and our families.

Unfortunately, fluoride is one of those contaminants that requires a special filtration medium. It is completely unaffected by most drinking water filtration technologies commercially sold today that rely solely on some form of carbon or ionization. Systems that use enough of the right grade of activated alumina can provide an effective Fluoride Water Filter. Other effective methods include reverse-osmosis and distillation. There are some filtration companies that do handle the problem and solve it inexpensively, so remember to search out those that do. Remember, too, that most bottled water, reconstituted drinks, juices and sodas, are not  fluoride free. Filter your water at home for the most effective reduction in fluoride.

Actions you can take

There are a few simple actions you can take to limit the intake of fluoride in your family’s diet.

• Avoid bottled and canned drinks including bottled water.
• Avoid eating meats that may contain ground up bones.
• Avoid eating the skin of fish.
• Determine if fluoride is in your tap water.
• Purchase a water filter effective for removing fluorine.

If you decide to purchase a water filter, then be certain that it reduces fluoride to safe level, some claim to reduce fluoride but do not achieve safe levels. Filters found at www.thebestwaterfiltration.com in our Filtration Systems pages are our recommended choices.