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> Power Toothpaste does not contain Fluoride. We know many of you don't want fluoride in your toothpaste. This seems bizarre to me. People don't want fluoride
by BorgHunter 10y ago
> Power Toothpaste does not contain Fluoride. We know many of you don't want fluoride in your toothpaste.
This seems bizarre to me. People don't want fluoride in their toothpaste? Why not? Dentists seem pretty unanimous that everyone should brush twice a day with fluoride toothpaste.
- zzalpha 10y agoYeah. Welcome to a world where beliefs are equivalent to facts. Even real life experiments like this: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/tooth-decay-calgary-fluoride-water-1.3450616 http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/tooth-decay-calgary-fl... Are unlikely to dissuade folks given the echo chambers people are encouraged to live in today.
- Raphmedia 10y agoThe popular opinion is that we already get enough fluoride in our water.
- monknomo 10y agoIf you're lucky enough to live somewhere where the crazies haven't defluorinated your water because "you're polluting our pure water with chemicals..."
- coopermor1 10y agoI don't think it's that clear - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3491930/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3491930/
- Drdrdrq 10y agoCrazies or people who actually care about environment? Fluorinating water must be one of the least efficient ways of doing this.
- toomuchtodo 10y agoIf you'll coordinate an effort to get florinated products into the hands of everyone in the US who can't afford them, I'll agree with you.
- mod 10y agoLike toothpaste? You actually think it's easier/cheaper to put it in the entire water supply vs handing out some free toothpaste?
- Retra 10y agoToothpaste isn't free. Producing toothpaste, putting flouride in it, and distributing it are all harder than putting fluoride in water and distributing it. Water is pumped to people's houses from central locations. Toothpaste has to be placed in tubes and shipped around on boats and trucks.
- thatcat 10y agoThe reason foridation has additional FDA requirements is because it's essentially a medicine, not a food supplement like iodine - which is an essential nutrient. So to justify the medication of entire communities at the exact same dose of a non-essential pharmacological product in an effort to ensure poor people receive enough flouride seems misguided. Calcium has a similar hardening effect on teeth and is present in water already - forming the scale you see in the shower Ca(CO3). Additionally, flouride stains your teeth [0]. [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dental_fluorosis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dental_fluorosis
- brassic 10y agoHard water has calcium and soft water doesn't. My city gets naturally soft water and we don't get scale. But we do get added fluoride.
- schwap 10y ago> Crazies or people who actually care about environment? The environment??? Fluoride, like many minerals, is naturally occurring in many water sources, just not (all) of the ones that are used for drinking water. Additionally, the concentration of fluoride for this purpose is minuscule (0.7 mg/L according to Health Canada).
- 2AF3 10y agoIt's not the role of government to brush my teeth.
- bduerst 10y agoIt is when tooth decay is a major public health concern.
- kakarot 10y agoActually no, it still isn't.
- dx034 10y agoI think it is, not for you but for your children. Too many parents don't take proper care of their children's teeth and this can cause non-reversible damages. Adding flouride is not the perfect solution but it can help to some degree.
- kakarot 10y agoThe problem is a combination of sugar over-consumption and bad dental hygiene. Those are the issues that need to be addressed. Adding flouride to our drinking supply does not address these issues.
- freehunter 10y agoIf you can't afford insurance, the government makes sure you get the health care you need to stay alive and healthy. So the government has a vested interest in making sure people stay healthy, because if a poor person gets sick, the government is paying for their healthcare. Not everyone brushes their teeth, not everyone can afford toothpaste. Everyone has to drink water, though, and fluoride in water causes no real health problems. It's a very quick win for public health, because otherwise the government would be paying to replace poor people's teeth.
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- Broken_Hippo 10y agoI don't think my water has fluoride, though.
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- knicholes 10y agohttps://nccd.cdc.gov/DOH_MWF/Default/Default.aspx https://nccd.cdc.gov/DOH_MWF/Default/Default.aspx will tell you whether or not your water source should/shouldn't be flouridated if you live in the US.
- Broken_Hippo 10y agoThanks ... but I live in Norway. I'm not sure any of the water is fluoridated here. In the states, however, everywhere I lived had fluoride in the water.
- drakonandor 10y agoWater often has some levels of fluoride naturally.
- ptaipale 10y agoYes, and it always has had - one would expect that during the human evolution, the human body developed to expect and utilize variable levels of fluoride in drinking water. Nowadays we consume processed water which is clear of many impurities and tends to come just one source. The quality is extremely consistent, so we don't die of poisonings and contaminations. But then, the selection of where our drinking water comes from, and the purification processes may have the impact that the fluoride level is consistently lower than is good. Hence the possible need to add fluoride to water.
- ptaipale 10y agoWater is fluoridated in Norway if it needs be, i.e. the fluoride content of drinking water is moderated so that it is between 0.7 and 1.2 mg/l (i.e. around one part per million). https://sml.snl.no/fluoridering https://sml.snl.no/fluoridering
- BorgHunter 10y agoIf this is true, then I must be really out of touch. No one has expressed that opinion to me, nor have I seen it on Facebook in my News Feed (and I do occasionally see woo-woo stuff there). And I've certainly never heard a dentist say that. I'm not surprised that there are people who make this claim, but I would never have considered it "the popular opinion", or even a popular opinion.
- reportingsjr 10y agoThe US Dept of Health and Human Services actually halved their recommendation for fluoride in water about six months ago. The reasoning is apparently that people in the US now get enough from other sources such as toothpaste, mouth washes, etc [1]. Note that they didn't /remove/ the recommendation for fluoride in water. They just reduced the recommended amount. 1: http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2015/04/27/402579949/feds-say-its-time-to-cut-back-on-fluoride-in-drinking-water http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2015/04/27/40257994...
- nappy 10y agoGetting too much fluoride is something that can occur as well: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dental_fluorosis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dental_fluorosis
- reportingsjr 10y agoI am all too aware as I have mild fluorosis in some of my teeth! Although I think the biggest cause of this was semi regular fluoride rinses at the dentist when I was a kid.
- nikolay 10y agoIt's the most stupid thing, though. We also shower and cook with this water.
- tclancy 10y agoAgreed. It's sapping our precious bodily fluids. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qr2bSL5VQgM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qr2bSL5VQgM
- nikolay 10y agoWell, if you're okay with putting excess amounts of chemicals on your skin that are targeting your teeth although you may get enough from green tea, I'm not, and many others aren't either. I bought a chlorine filter for my shower, and all my dandruff and skin itching issues have disappeared, so, call it a conspiracy theory or whatever, but you can't beat the facts.
- zyxley 10y agoAnecdotes are not data.
- nikolay 10y agoI'm not a computer; I'm a human being, and I apply heuristics all the time. Maybe you're not. Anyway, data can be forged, and has been forged numerous times driven by corporate and political interest. What I do works for me, and works well - I look for fluoride-free products - you can stick with using agricultural waste in your water supply, but I stay off it!
- jscottmiller 10y agoJudging from this comment, the choice to remove fluoride seems to be a way to avoid additional FDA testing (including animal studies). https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12507965 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12507965
- Broken_Hippo 10y agoWell, that is certainly a mountain of things to go through just for fluoride in toothpaste. I find it amazing that only basic testing is needed for cosmetic products and something one is easily ingesting (slightly) on a day to day basis, but yet... fluoride requires animal testing? I would think at this point, a simple chemical composition testing the fluorine levels would be appropriate enough. They obviously don't find the caffeine a threat enough to warrant such things in the product.
- msane 10y agoAre you advocating for less testing on toothpaste or more testing on cosmetics...
- Broken_Hippo 10y agoIn a way, both, depending. In the case of toothpaste, we've already tested fluoride. I'm going to guess we know the safe limits and the recommended amounts in the stuff. So as long as there isn't any new sorts of drug in the toothpaste and one is using pretty standard safe sort of ingredients, there isn't really a need for some of the testing - animal or human testing. Tests to verify the percentage of fluoride in the toothpaste? Absolutely. Getting the fluoride from verified sources? Sure thing. And so on. Cosmetics have relatively few standards comparatively [1]. In a way, it seems to be enough. It likely isn't an issue with common ingredients - same situation as fluoride. But on the other hand, if a company uses a new ingredient, I'd rather have some sort of official tests for safety. I think this is probably especially important with things used around the eyes and lips - and I'm not sure some of the warning labels are quite enough. For example, some of the Halloween makeup will have warnings not to use certain colors around the eyes (usually black or red). Of course, this is in small print on the back of the package, and not on the container holding the makeup. Yet if you look at the package, it often has that very color near the eyes. [1]http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/GuidanceRegulation/LawsRegulations/ucm074162.htm http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/GuidanceRegulation/LawsRegulati...
- nappy 10y agoI wrote a longer comment about this below, but the essential reason is: if I made fluoride a product requirement, I wouldn't have gotten to a release. It would have added a huge expense. Additionally, fluoride is much more important for children. As enamel is forming, fluoride interacts with it and strengthens it. Adults need far less (threshold dose effect) and for most people in the United States, they likely get enough in the water. I also figure this is a toothpaste you'll use in the morning, and another fluoridated one in the evening. You can also use a fluoridated mouthwash. At some point, I would love to introduce a fluoridated version.
- BorgHunter 10y agoThis is fair. I do think this should be a bit more prominent, though, because when I hear "toothpaste", I tend to assume it is fluoridated. Unfluoridated toothpaste is unusual enough that it should probably be called out right on the front of the box/tube, whereas right now it's kind of buried in a FAQ. Good job getting this off the ground, and best of luck with it.
- nappy 10y agoMuch appreciated! Based on this comment and others from HN, I think I'm going to add a whole section for Formulation/Ingredients, show the full label, talk about the process etc. Thank you again!
- PieterH 10y agoIf your formula is simple enough, listing it on the box might be good marketing. I really like the idea of caffeinated toothpaste. It is simple & brilliant and I hope you succeed with this.
- koytch 10y agoAs a guy living in Europe, it seems more logical to drink unfluoridated water and use fluoridated toothpaste, but that's America over there… Cool idea, for sure.
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- nikolay 10y agoIf I regularly drink green tea, I don't need extra fluoride.
- dxbydt 10y agoI don't. I always buy the non fluorinated toothpaste from Trader Joe's. Considering it is sold out 50% of the time, it is a pretty popular option.
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- generic_user 10y agoThere seems to be some hardcore pro fluoride fanatics on here. Never the less I will stand by you with my no fluoride Tom's Toothpaste and fight the good fight.
- generic_user 10y agoDown votes for no fluoride toothpaste? Good grief...
- generic_user 10y agoI use to brush my teeth with salt for a year or two. Looks like I could probably start back up with a year or two supply for free and save some cash.
- drdeca 10y agoI'm not sure, but I would guess that the "fight the good fight" part of the post might have contributed to the downvotes. Just a guess though.
- generic_user 10y agoTips tinfoil hat in agreement from solar power tipi.
- alexcabrera 10y agoDo you realize that in addition to fluoridating water, there are studies underway to fluoridate salt, flour, fruit juices, soap, sugar, milk. Ice cream. Children's ice cream. Fluoridation is the most monstrously conceived and dangerous Communist plot we have ever had to face. A foreign substance is introduced into our precious bodily fluids without the knowledge of the individual. Certainly without any choice. That's the way your hard-core Commie works.
- hooph00p 10y agoWhat am I reading?
- antisthenes 10y agoA movie quote.
- pravda 10y agoIt's a Dr. Strangelove reference.[1] [1]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4XhhTF7vRM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4XhhTF7vRM
- nohat 10y agoHumorously the poster of that clip is apparently using it to argue for his conspiracy theory about fluoride.
- david-given 10y agoApparently the Flouride Conspiracy Theory used in the film (go watch it, BTW; it's one of the best films of all time; and if you've already seen it, go watch it again) was based on actual real life: https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1891&dat=19620321&id=M54fAAAAIBAJ&sjid=qNUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=694,2464316&hl=en https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1891&dat=19620321&id=...
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- jimjimjim 10y agothat's ok, i get enough fluoride from the chemtrails.
- choward 10y agoYeah. This stuck out to me too. $15 dollars for a tube of toothpaste that doesn't contain flouride? What am I paying for? I'll just buy my own caffeine powder and use real toothpaste that's only $2.
- nixy 10y agoWhat you're paying for is not having to buy and mix your own caffeine powder.
- BMFX 10y agoI actually have fluorosis... I was shoved Fluride growing up and the damage it has done to my teeth is serve, add in my poor college choices and I will be having full on implants before I turn 40.
- HillRat 10y agoFluoridated toothpaste is, for regulatory purposes, a drug; caffeinated toothpaste is a food item. So this is just another way of saying, "We didn't want to deal with the regulatory burden." But, man, one tube of this thing is roughly the LD50 for caffeine ingestion. This is definitely a "keep out of the reach of children" product.
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