fluoride supplementation for rural babies?

[toughcookie]

hi all you rural mommas! if you have well water, what are you doing/have you been told about supplementing with fluoride prescriptions?

[Bebegim]

My aunt (whose about my age) lives in an non-fluoridated area. Her doc's tried to get her to give her babies supplements. I told her she was lucky, then she wouldnt have to buy an expensive filter attachment with fluoride removal, like we have. Fluoride has absolutely had zero long term testing suggesting its safe in any amount. Its terrible for your body!! Especially the bodies of children! Ive read every study I could find. We dont have cavities and we dont have fluoride!

[Katie T]

We grew up in the country and my youngest brother has lived there his whole life (we moved as young kids) and mom didn't give any of us fluoride. No issues with his teeth. I agree fluoride isn't a good thing nor is it needed IMO.

[broodymama]

We don't have well water but our city water is not fluoridated. We don't supplement with fluoride.

[is it puppies?]

As the PP I was going to say how lucky you are! look up the dangers of flouride, it is a toxic chemical and the only way that it *might* have been shown beneficial was topically not systemically. It's terrible!

I haven't been able to find a system that takes it out of the water, Bebegim what did you buy to remove the flouride? I have been looking for something since before I got pregnant.

[BeagleMommy]

How great to not have to worry about fluoride removal from your water! Count your blessings on that one!

Even my dentist is anti-fluoride. He said that it simply doesn't do what it's supposed to and the dangers to the thyroid, in particular, are quite serious.

We distill our water to remove the fluoride and then add minerals. It's a pain, but effective.

[toughcookie]

thank you mommas, for your responses. i maybe have a bit of a battle with my ped, or at least a heated discussion. no one has anything good to say about supplementation!

[Alisse]

Fluoride incorporated into the actual structure of teeth does make teeth more acid resistant and therefore less prone to cavities. Many ppl benefit from fluoridated water in non-fluoridated areas because, for example, commercial beverages and other products containing water may contain water originally from a fluoridated area. Water fluoridation is actually considered one of top ten greatest public health achievements of the 20th century according to the CDC and surgeon general. Too much fluoride is bad; but then again, too much oxygen or water can be toxic for the body too. I think the continued controversy has more to do with whether water fluoridation need be continued given the greater general level of oral health awareness. But i don't think anyone can deny the clear benefits water fluoridation has had on communities if you've weighed what's in the literature, (i know too much about this topic as i did a little project on it a while back in my undergraduate years when the controversy was a little hotter). Anyway, believing that fluoride is entirely bad is like believing silver fillings are bad -- opinions based on mis-information or myth.

[toughcookie]

thanks, alisse. this is so much food for thought. not knowing how much fluoride is in our drinking water in cities (where i lived last year) and how much is needed for healthy tooth development with well water (in the rural community i'm in now) is driving me crazy. my ped gave me a 'script for fluoride and i have no gut instinct on this one (which is rare).

[lalemma]

That is my understanding as well.

Oops - that was meant in response to Alisse.

To add a note - perhaps you could ask around in your community for a referral to a well-respected dentist and go in and ask his or her opinion. Anecdotes aren't evidence, of course, but a dentist who works with supplementing AND non-supplementing families in your area could probably offer some insight as to outcomes.

[babygirlie]

There is nothing good about flouride unless you are hyperthyroid and you need your thyroid destroyed. A little bit will sufficiently destroy your thyroid.

I am horrified when i see flouridated baby water UGH

My school offered kids super flouride toothpaste. It was around then I became obese and my thyroid stopped working. I was like 7. It should be a crime to have it in water. There is no independent evidence supporting that it has any benefits. I am shocked cities still add it. But then again money makes the government go round. (The companies that dumped their refuse (which had flouride) in rivers, paid off the city to let them.)

[Perdita_in_Ontario]

We are on well water with no fluoride. I've checked with:

-our old pediatrician (said no and produced a journal article to back it up)
- our family doctor (said no)
- our adult dentist (no)
- our ped dentist (no - and even though our DD has 2 capped teeth because of enamel issues he said topical fluoride once they can spit is much better)

so I'm comfortable with no fluoride!

[hildare]

we too have well water, nothing added that isn't there already.
i am not at all planning on adding/giving my child fluoride. it's a byproduct of the aluminum industry from my limited understanding, and not a necessary product for anyone's health. i do know that local elementary schools try to get students to rinse with a commercial fluoride product and this is part of the school nurse's job, and this happens unless parents opt out. i'd read more about what fluoride is and does before deciding.

[Gemini529]

When I was a little kid, my dentist had my parents give me a fluoride pill every night after brushing my teeth. I don't remember how long I took it for, but my mother swears it is the reason why my siblings and I never had cavities. I personally think it has more to do with my mom's crusade against sugar and the fact that I had all of my back teeth sealed. Perhaps brushing helped as well. Also, I have heard kids who take certain medications are more likely to have weak teeth...and sometimes it's just genetics. Who really knows though?

At this point, I am not suffering any side effects 25+ years later, but that isn't to say that I won't, or have and am unaware. I do have serious issues with spacing out so maybe it affected my brain somehow? Someone mentioned it affecting your thyroid which I find interesting because my sister was just diagnosed with a thyroid condition that her doctor said is causing her estrogen levels to be low and the reason why she is very underweight and having fertility issues. Maybe it's connected...?

I would be really skeptical about giving my son extra fluoride. Perhaps it does benefit your teeth to some degree but i"m not sure it's worth the possible long term health effects.

Also, while my mom is very pro fluoride, she is very anti-silver filling. She's currently on a mission to get all of her fillings removed and filled with white ones, and believes that her current stomach problems are linked to her fillings interacting with each other and causing a reaction when she swallows. Sounds really weird but when she explained it to me it made a lot of sense.

Alisse, you can never know "too much" about anything. Also, the government and CDC are not always looking out for your best interest, just because they claim to be. There are a lot of powerful lobbyists who work on behalf of corporations.

What was this project you did and what was your major in college? Do you currently work in the dental industry?

[Pookietooth]

We have always had fluoridated water, and ds's teeth are horrible. He's had to have 5 pulled due to decay, and nearly every tooth has at least one filling in it. So I don't buy the idea that fluoride strenghtens teeth. If you look at what minerals are in teeth, fluoride is not anywhere near the top. Calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, boron, even strontium is higher than fluoride.

[Pookietooth]

If you really want to do fluoride, later on you can just do a smear of fluoridated toothpaste on a toothbrush regularly.

[jump mama jump!]

I did a ton of research on this a few years ago. Personally I wouldn't use fluoride at all. Google "skeletal fluorosis." It erodes your skeleton so i just don't see how it could possibly be good for teeth. The conspiracy theory side of the debate is pretty interesting too, to say the least.

http://fluoridealert.org/fluoride-statement.htm

http://www.fluoridation.com/calgaryl.htm

http://www.ahealedplanet.net/fluoride.htm

[MyFullHouse]

My small sample size doesn't exactly make for a good study , but I thought I'd share.

Kid 1- Fully bottle fed with flouridated city water in his formula, then up to age 7. No supplements. He has discolored teeth that the dentist claims is a result of *too much* flouride.

Kids 2 and 3- Bottle fed from around 2-3 months with flouridated city water, then up to ages 2 and 3. Limited supplements (I was lazy about refills). Both have horrible teeth with multiple fillings.

Kid 4- EBF to 10 months. We've been on well water all of his life. No supplements. He has perfect teeth (so far!).

My kids (minus #1) do get topical flouride treatments at the dentist, and the older 3 use floride toothpaste, but we've decided to forego oral supplements.

[Ianthe]

We don't do fluoride supplements.. if you are concerned about their lack of fluoride, take them to the dentist and have them do a topical treatment. Fluoride is no good for developing bodies!

The links posted above are really good, please read them before you decide to give your children fluoride.

[bananabee]

Originally Posted by Pookietooth

So I don't buy the idea that fluoride strenghtens teeth. If you look at what minerals are in teeth, fluoride is not anywhere near the top. Calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, boron, even strontium is higher than fluoride.

I was going to say the same thing. My two siblings and I grew up w/o fluoridated water, and all had perfect teeth with zero cavities. The city started fluoridating the water when I was in my early 20s. I recall going to a dentist a few years later, and when he examined my teeth, he asked if I'd grown up locally. When I said yes, he grumbled that he didn't see any benefit to adding fluoride to the water.

It also doesn't seem right to me that if the target is supposedly children, why fluoridate ALL public water? It is a neurotoxin.

Originally Posted by Pookietooth

If you really want to do fluoride, later on you can just do a smear of fluoridated toothpaste on a toothbrush regularly.

ITA. That's what I've done a couple times due to sensitive spots where I brushed too hard regularly. I used toothpaste for sensitive teeth for a few weeks, and it took care of the problem.

I wish my husband would listen and let us get a filter. He just thinks I'm paranoid.