Donald Trump plans to push to eliminate fluoride from America’s drinking water on his first day in office if elected, according to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
On Saturday, former independent presidential candidate Kennedy addressed Issue X, claiming that fluoride is an “industrial waste” linked to arthritis, bone cancer, IQ loss and thyroid disease.
But experts call these claims unfounded, as fluoride has been added to drinking water and toothpaste in the United States and Canada for decades as a way to help reduce cavities and improve dental health, especially in communities. with limited access to dental care.
“For someone to come out and say, ‘We’re going to ban community water fluoridation because it causes arthritis, bone fractures, bone cancer, neurodevelopmental disorders, and thyroid problems’…no one can give that carte blanche because there’s no science that support it. that,” said Dr. Gerry Uswak, a Associate professor of public health at the University of Saskatchewan.
While he believes it is important to investigate the health effects of fluoride in community water, he insists that such studies must be based on scientific evidence.
Kennedy, a well-known defender of debunked health claims, also said Trump has pledged to hold him accountable for major public health agencies in his administration if he wins a second term.
“On January 20, the Trump White House will brief all of America. water systems to remove fluoride from public water. “Fluoride is an industrial waste associated with arthritis, bone fractures, bone cancer, IQ loss, neurodevelopmental disorders and thyroid diseases,” Kennedy said. in his position.
Trump told NBC News on Sunday that he had not yet spoken to Kennedy about fluoride, “but I’m fine with it. You know it’s possible.”
Although it can be controversial, Dr. Aaron Burry, executive director of the Canadian Dental Association, said there is so much misinformation circulating about fluoride that the issue usually becomes a political issue right before an election.
“The benefit of this at levels in Canada is that we see people’s oral health improving and reducing cavities overall in the population,” he said. It is only at high levels, and generally from natural sources such as wells, where it can pose health risks.
Here’s what you should know about fluoride in drinking water.
Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral and is commonly found in water, air, soil, plants, and foods. according to Health Canada.
“It’s leached out of the environment, there are naturally fluoridated water supplies where the fluoride content is much higher than what’s discharged into the community water system,” Uswak said.
And it can help strengthen teeth.
Fluoride molecules create stronger teeth by hardening tooth enamel. Health Canada said, contributing to the remineralization of the tooth surface and deterring oral bacteria.
Why is there fluoride in the water supply?
In the early 20th century, cavities were “endemic” in the United States, Uswak explained. However, researchers discovered a community in Colorado that seemed immune to this problem.
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After investigating, they discovered that the local water contained natural fluoride, which strengthens teeth and prevents cavities.
These findings ultimately led to the decision to add fluoride to public water supplies as a way to prevent cavities. In the 1940s, it was added to public drinking water in the United States and Canada.
Adding low levels of fluoride to drinking water has long been considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
However, there are limits to how much can be added to water.
In Canada, the optimal level of fluoride in water is 0.7 milligrams per liter (which can also be described as 0.7 parts per million), Health Canada stated. The optimal level takes into account the fluoride that people get from other sources, such as fluoridated toothpaste or mouthwash.
“The Centers for Disease Control and Health Canada and several organized oral health agencies believe that, in moderation, the amount we use is safe,” Uswak said.
Health Canada stated that adding fluoride to drinking water is also “the most cost-effective and equitable method of providing fluoride to the population. “This population-based preventive intervention contributes to oral health equity by overcoming common social determinants of health, such as age, education, income, and access to professional dental care.”
From a public health perspective, it is also associated with a 25 per cent reduction in dental cavities in children and adults, Health Canada added.
Are there risks from high levels of fluoride?
Fluoride intake has both beneficial effects, such as reducing the number of dental cavities, and negative effects at high doses, including the risk of tooth enamel and skeletal fluorosis from high and prolonged exposure. according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Such exposure can cause dental fluorosis or disabling skeletal fluorosis, which is accompanied by osteosclerosis, calcification of tendons and ligaments, and bone deformities, the WHO stated.
Alberta Health says fluoride levels of 2.5 milligrams per liter or more may increase the risk of skeletal fluorosis.
Dental fluorosis is a condition that changes the appearance of tooth enamel (the outer layer of the teeth): small white spots appear on permanent teeth, Health Canada said.
Skeletal fluorosis, a condition that involves hardening of bones and joints, can occur when high levels of fluoride build up in the bones over many years. This condition is extremely rare in Canada, where fluoride levels in drinking water are carefully regulated and fluoride content in products is limited, Health Canada said.
“Since the 1940s, researchers have been testing the safety and benefits of fluoride. Other than dental fluorosis and skeletal fluorosis, there are no other health effects related to fluoride,” Health Canada said.
In his post, Kennedy stated that fluoride is linked to bone cancer; However, the WHO states that this claim is based solely on a study conducted in rats and has not been shown to apply to humans.
“Although administration of very high doses of fluoride to rats in a two-year cancer bioassay was associated with an increased incidence of osteosarcoma, there is no evidence in recent, peer-reviewed publications that fluoride levels in drinking water intended to control dental caries are associated with an increased risk of bone cancer in humans,” the WHO said.
In August 2024, a report from the US National Toxicology Program found that fluoride in drinking water at twice the recommended limit is linked to lower IQ in children. The report suggested that drinking water containing more than 1.5 milligrams of fluoride per liter is consistently associated with lower IQ in children.
However, the report did not conclude the risks of lower levels of fluoride and said more studies are needed. It also did not answer what effects high levels of fluoride might have on adults.
Burry emphasized that many studies linking high levels of fluoride to adverse side effects often come from regions such as Mexico and China, where there is naturally a high concentration of this mineral in the water supply.
“When you look at studies from other countries, in particular, that are well above the maximum of 1.5 parts per million, these will largely be done in water sources, which are not municipal water sources,” he said. “So that’s not what we have in Canada. So it’s really not a reasonable comparison.”
Uswak said research continues to show that, in moderation, fluoride in water is safe and provides important dental health benefits. However, both he and Burry stressed the importance of continuing research into the health benefits and potential drawbacks of fluoride.
“We have to give the correct information and spread the rhetoric, and it is our requirement to continue to investigate it to keep it safe or make those changes if it is not,” he said.
If the United States eliminates fluoride from its water, Uswak said it is difficult to predict exactly how tooth decay rates will be affected, since results may vary among different populations. However, he believes that, overall, tooth decay rates are likely to increase, especially in disadvantaged communities.
“If there is a community that is more disadvantaged and has low health literacy or dental care… it will be even higher for people at risk,” he said.
He also pointed to the case of Calgary, which removed fluoride from its water in 2011 and subsequently saw an increase in tooth decay rates among the population.
In 2011, Calgary city council voted to eliminate fluoride from the city’s drinking water. Following this decision, studies conducted over the following years noted an increase in tooth decay rates, especially among children.
In November 2021, Calgary City Council voted to approve the reintroduction of fluoride after a plebiscite showed 62 per cent support for adding the mineral to the city’s drinking water.
The city is still working to reintroduce fluoride into its drinking water, citing infrastructure issues.
– with files from Carolyn Kury de Castillo of Global News and Associated Press
