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Fluoride in water?
OK - humor me...
I'm a bit new to all the "green" stuff and from the research I've been doing it seems like EVERYTHING can kill you. :P I was recently told that fluoride is more toxic than lead, yet it's added to our water for the sake of "dental health"
*I will say that the person telling me about all this is a bit prone to conspiracy theories.*
What are you're thoughts on this? It seems like all the research they've done has been inconclusive but they don't seem to be researching it very well either. We already filter our water but it doesn't do anything for fluoride. Our county has very high natural fluoride levels.
After dropping most meat from my diet, and looking into CSA's and canning - I'm reassuring my DH that I'll keep the legs and pits shaved 
lol
Re: Fluoride in water?
I haven't done much research in the way of this, but I just wanted to comment and say I have to reassure my DH about the same thing. LOL! He was deployed for six months and while he was gone, I was left alone with the world wide web - which turned me into an ubber hippie chic. Haha! The way I get around some of his criticism is to talk about the cost effectiveness of most of the changes. I can't imagine not shaving - shaved legs on cool sheets = too great to let go. :-)
In the process of writing all of this, my sister called and she works with a non-profit dental and said that according to the CDC fluoride is perfectly safe. However, with me being all weird and anti-establishment, can you trust the CDC? LOL!
Haha me too! DH is also worried I'll try to push "family cloth" (cloth toilet paper). Not that I would try to do that, that's going too far
I haven't done a ton of research into fluoride but what I've read has convinced me that it's not right for me. I have an underactive thyroid and research does show that fluoride can negatively impact the thyroid. God knows I don't need any more problems with it than I already have so I just avoid it. We buy filtered water that removes most of the fluoride and I don't use fluoride toothpaste.
Just like we might be skeptical of the conspiracy theorist type person who told you about fluoride, I think we need to be skeptical of government/companies/researchers/others who tell us something. So many people have motives that may not be in our best interest, even if their motives aren't apparent.
Tired after a long morning of hiking and swimming.
It is toxic in high levels. It has been found to be safe in the low levels used in municipal water. Research determining how safe or necessary is inconclusive, but findings lean toward safe-ish but unnecessary/ineffective.
Personally, i'm fine with it in toothpaste, but not drinking water (topical application v. ingestion).
Best sound ever: baby's heartbeat! (Heard @ 10w1d)
I'm not a dentist and have not really done any research, but the finding that fluoride helps prevent cavities is not a US government theory. It has been shown in multiple medical papers, and not just in the US, but around the world. That is why other countries try to put fluoride in things, other than water (ie milk).
Now I do not know whether the exact dosage for optimum prevention has been determined, or how it balances the risk over getting too much fluoride, especially for people who drink a lot of tap water. It is a very interesting question, indeed!
I guess if you're concerned about it, buy bottled water. I grew up in a country that did not put fluoride in the water and I have a lot of cavities. Not saying that is cause and effect, but I'm fine drinking the US fluorinated water for now in hopes of preventing more cavities!
Haha I recently played a joke on DH and told him I was switching to family cloth. He flipped out. As for the fluoride issue, it really creeps me out. I drink filtered tap water all the time (I won't support the bottled water industry), and the fluoride is often on my mind. Fluioride is meant for topical use...I don't think its meant to be ingested. But I guess there's not much I can do, and I figure drinking from the tap as opposed to buying bottled water is the lesser of the 2 evils.
Yeah this is my thinking too. I use a Brita filter, but I don't think it does much for fluoride.
I grew up in the country where we had a private well so no fluoride for me either besides that one fluoride treatment they do to young kids. DH & I now own a home in the country also with a private well (ie no chlorine, no fluoride, etc). Now I have a high number of cavities and have to use a prescription strength fluoride toothpaste once a day to make up for it. The dentist said she can see the difference it has made on my teeth. I just wish I had been using it since I was young!
I never had a cavity in my life until I went a year w/ only drinking bottled water.
It's anecdotal but . . . yeah.
Since your county has naturally high fluoride levels, I'd only be concerned if you had thyroid issues like PP mentioned.
Topically, fluoride is great for strengthening tooth enamel. Once it's ingested however, it doesn't do anything for teeth and if a child is over-exposed to fluoride during the first 2 years of life it can cause fluorosis in permanent teeth (an enamel defect). Generally, I don't think that happens with fluoridated water on its own.
You don't have to go crazy with fluoride to benefit from it. For tooth cleaning, a little smear to coat the bristles of the brush is all that's needed (not like the giant blobs in toothpaste ads!). It works best in small, frequent applications which I guess is part of the reasoning behind adding it to drinking water. The sugar alcohol xylitol (found in toothpastes, rinses, mints and gum) can enhance fluoride's effects.
We don't have fluoride in our water. I called the town for the Consumer Confidence Report because I was concerned with how much fluoride the kids were being exposed to from their Rx vitamins and small amounts of toothepaste. I switched to non-fluoride paste, and know that now they are only exposed to it in their vitamins.
I don't know the facts on if it is safe or not, but I want to control the amount so their teeth are healthy and we err on the side of caution. The CCR is handy for checking lead too.