Fluoride Toxicity:
as Bad as Mercury & Arsenic?
Written By
BeWellBuzz
World’s most prestigious medical journal has put fluoride
in the same category as mercury, lead and arsenic; officially classifying it as
a neurotoxin. This post from Waking Science discusses the summary of the report
that was published in Lancet.
The movement to remove industrial sodium fluoride from
the world’s water supply has been growing in recent years, with evidence coming
out against the additive from several sources.
Now, a report from the world’s oldest and most
prestigious medical journal, The Lancet, has officially classified fluoride as
a neurotoxin — in the same category as arsenic, lead and mercury.
The news was broken by author Stefan Smyle, who cited a
report published in The Lancet Neurology, Volume 13, Issue 3, in the March 2014
edition, by authors Dr. Phillippe Grandjean and Philip J. Landrigan, MD. The
report, which was officially released in 2014 and published in the journal, can
be viewed by
clicking here.
Fluoride Classified
Along with Mercury, Lead and Others
As noted in the summary of the report, a systematic
review identified five different similar industrial chemicals as developmental
neurotoxicants: lead, methylmercury, polychlorinated biphenyls, arsenic, and
toluene.
The summary goes on to state that six additional developmental
neurotoxicants have also now been identified: manganese, fluoride,
chlorpyrifos, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, tetrachloroethylene, and the
polybrominated diphenyl ethers. The authors added that even more of these
neurotoxicants remain undiscovered.
Also in the report, they note that neurodevelopmental
disabilities, including attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia, and
other cognitive impairments, are now affecting millions of children worldwide
in what they call a “pandemic of developmental neurotoxicity.”
Because of the documented health risks of fluoride, many
people have launched campaigns to remove the chemical from their water
supplies, to varying degrees of success.
Such initiatives usually begin through the are often
controversial and emotionally charged because of the reputation fluoride still
enjoys among mainstream dentistry practitioners.
In addition to fluoride in city water supplies, the
substance can also be found in certain foods, especially in heavily processed
brands of tea that may be grown in polluted areas (see this
list for more info).
If you’ve ever noticed the warnings on toothpaste
labels you probably know just how serious fluoride poisoning can be, especially
for children if they swallow too much at one time.
Because of this threat, many parents have begun eschewing
fluoridated toothpaste brands altogether and are using more natural brands such
as Earthpaste, Desert Essence, Uncle Harry’s Toothpaste Dr. Bronner’s toothpaste line, or even making
their own from a combination of ingredients such as coconut oil,
organic neem leaf powders, essential oils like peppermint or
cinnamon, and other natural ingredients.
The fluoride added to our water supply is mostly seen as
a cumulative
toxin that accumulates in our bodies and can manifest itself in
problems over time, includingdental fluorosis,
or far worse health problems.
Global Fluoride Prevention Strategy Recommended
In the Lancet report, the authors propose a global
prevention strategy, saying that “untested chemicals should not be presumed to
be safe to brain development, and chemicals in existing use and all new
chemicals must therefore be tested for developmental neurotoxicity.”
They continue: “To coordinate these efforts and to
accelerate translation of science into prevention, we propose the urgent
formation of a new international clearinghouse.”
The report coincides with 2013
findings by a Harvard University meta-analysis funded by the
National Institutes of Health that concluded that children in areas with highly
fluoridated water have “significantly
lower” IQ scores that those who live in areas with low amounts of
fluoride in their water supplies.
Sodium fluoride in drinking water has also been linked to various
cancers. It is functionally different than the naturally-occurring
calcium fluoride, and commonly added to drinking water supplies and used by
dentists who posit that it is useful for dental health.
Fluoridation is
Actually Uncommon in Europe
Currently, fluoride
is added to water supplies across much of North America, but as this
list of countries that ban or reject water fluoridation shows, the
practice is actually not too common, or banned entirely throughout most of
Europe and in several other developed nations across the world.
Since most places
in America still add fluoride to the water a high quality water
filter is recommend to filter out the fluoride, and it can be
especially important to avoid exposing yourself to too much fluoride in your
daily shower or bath.
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