Fluoride is Detrimental to Brain Health

Fluoride is a neurotoxin that has been linked to reduced IQ, impaired neurobehavioral development and brain damage. There are 25 studies showing that fluoride reduces IQ in children, and approximately 100 animal studies have also linked fluoride to brain damage. This includes such effects as:³

Reduction in nicotinic acetylcholine receptors	Damage to the hippocampus	Formation of beta-amyloid plaques (the classic brain abnormality in Alzheimer's disease)
Reduction in lipid content	Damage to the purkinje cells	Exacerbation of lesions induced by iodine deficiency
Impaired antioxidant defense systems	Increased uptake of aluminum	Accumulation of fluoride in the pineal gland

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One particularly striking animal study published in 1995 showed that fluoride ingestion had a profound influence on the animals' brains and altered behavior.⁴ Pregnant rats given fluoride produced hyperactive offspring. And animals given fluoride after birth became apathetic, lethargic "couch potatoes.

Farm Bill Reverses the Planned Phase-Out of Toxic Sulfuryl Fluoride

While it's encouraging that US cities and other countries are taking action to end this dangerous practice, earlier this month the Agricultural Act of 2014 (better known as the "Farm Bill") was passed. Unfortunately, it includes language that reverses the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) proposed phase-out of sulfuryl fluoride. The reversal was added in the eleventh hour after intense lobbying by the National Pest Management Association and Dow AgroSciences. The language states:

"Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall exclude non-pesticideal sources of fluoride from any aggregate exposure assessment required under section 408 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 346a) when assessing tolerances associated with residues from the pesticide."

The idea of using sulfuryl fluoride, a toxic food fumigant, is extremely worrying as it not only leaves toxic residues on food, but can be lethal to humans in its pure gas form—the form in which it is applied to the food. According to Dr. Paul Connett, PhD, a chemist and executive director of the Fluoride Action Network (FAN), people have died during the application of the fumigant.

When applied to food, it breaks down into free fluoride. Many American children are already heavily overexposed to fluoride, so this added source of exposure can only worsen matters. (Organic foods do not permit its use.) According to Dr. Connett, there's every reason to be concerned about the use of sulfuryl fluoride gas on food, because some of the fluoride residues allowed by the EPA are "astronomical."

For example, the EPA was allowing 120 parts per million (ppm) of fluoride on wheat flour. Wheat flour is consumed in so many foods on a daily basis by most people that you not only need to be concerned about chronic effects of low-level fluoride intake, but also with its acute effects. Dr. Connett goes so far as to say that you could potentially be in serious trouble simply by eating a pizza made from a recently fumigated batch of wheat flour.

Send a Letter to Your Local Newspaper to Warn About the Use of Sulfuryl Fluoride

The EPA's plan to phase out sulfuryl fluoride was a major victory but Dow AgroSciences (which makes the fumigant ProFume®, which is 99.8 percent sulfuryl fluoride) has been relentless in trying to reverse the plan. First, they tried to introduce an amendment to the Farm Bill that would have allowed them to continue using sulfuryl fluoride, which meant subverting the EPA for doing its job. Congress kept that amendment out. But, Dow came back again, this time using the 2014 House Appropriations Farm Bill to cut back a lot of EPA's work, including that relating to sulfuryl fluoride. According to FAN:

"The U.S. will now remain one of only two countries in the world that allows this highly toxic fumigant to be sprayed directly on food, leaving unsafe levels of fluoride residue to be eaten by consumers and putting infants and children at risk of exceeding the EPA's own reference dose for fluoride. Please take a few moments to use our automated system to send a letter to the editor of your local newspaper educating your neighbors about the terrible sulfuryl fluoride provision in the farm bill. We should at least warn everyone, and use this opportunity to call for an end to fluoridation."

You can send a letter to the editor of your local paper using this link.

Do You Drink Fluoridated Water?

If you drink fluoridated water, it makes sense to try to increase your intake of lycopene and other dietary antioxidants to potentially decrease the fluoride's toxicity. One study found that fluoride administration induced oxidative stress, but when lycopene, an antioxidant, was also given, it helped to minimize the toxic effects of fluoride.⁵ Lycopene, a carotenoid antioxidant that gives fruits and vegetables like tomatoes and watermelons a pink or red color has long been suggested to be more powerful than that of other carotenoids, such as beta-carotene. It's found in tomatoes (especially cooked tomatoes), apricots, guavas, watermelons, papayas, and pink grapefruits.

Another option is to purchase a water filter that removes fluoride. The three types of filters that can remove fluoride are reverse osmosis, deionizers (which use ion-exchange resins), and activated alumina. Each of these filters should be able to remove about 90% of the fluoride. By contrast, "activated carbon" filters (e.g., Brita & Pur) do not remove fluoride. For more information from FAN on fluoride and water filters here. You can also help to take action to get fluoride out of drinking water on a larger scale…

Join the Fight to Get Fluoride Out of Drinking Water

There's no doubt about it: fluoride should not be ingested. Even scientists from the EPA's National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory have classified fluoride as a "chemical having substantial evidence of developmental neurotoxicity." Furthermore, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 41 percent of American adolescents now have dental fluorosis—unattractive discoloration and mottling of the teeth that indicate overexposure to fluoride. Clearly, children are being overexposed, and their health and development put in jeopardy. Why?

At least when it comes to topical application, you have a choice. You can easily buy fluoride-free toothpaste and mouthwash. But you're stuck with whatever your community puts in the water, and it's very difficult to filter out of your water once it's added. Many do not have the resources or the knowledge to do so.

The only real solution is to stop the archaic practice of water fluoridation in the first place. Fortunately, the Fluoride Action Network has a game plan to END water fluoridation, both in the US and Canada. Clean pure water is a prerequisite to optimal health. Industrial chemicals, drugs and other toxic additives really have no place in our water supplies. So, please, support the anti-fluoride movement by making a donation to the Fluoride Action Network today.