5 ms·

Drinking fluoridated water does not do anything to protect teeth. They don't have it in Europe and have dental health that's just fine. Just goes to show you

Drinking fluoridated water does not do anything to protect teeth. They don't have it in Europe and have dental health that's just fine. Just goes to show you can do ANYTHING with good PR. The Fluoridation campaign was headed up by Edward Bernays[1] who was Freud's Nephew and one of the greatest propagandists of all time. His other famous accomplishment was convincing women that they should smoke[2]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_relations_campaigns_of_Edward_Bernays#Water_Fluoridation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_relations_campaigns_of_... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_relations_campaigns_of_Edward_Bernays#Cigarettes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_relations_campaigns_of_...

dkersten 7y ago
I'm no fan of mass medication without a choice (or supplementation, whatever), but what you state is not the full story: > They don't have it in Europe and have dental health that's just fine. Much of Europe (not all) doesn't fluoridate their water, but they DO fluoridate salt and milk, or have high levels of natural fluoride in their water. To quote wikipedia[1] (yes, yes, I know, although they at least have a citation[2] for it): > the European Commission finds no advantage to water fluoridation compared with topical use > Community water fluoridation is rare in Continental Europe with 97–98% choosing not to fluoridate drinking water. Fluoridated salt and milk is promoted in some European countries instead. Water fluoridation has been replaced by other modes in many countries where water supplies are too decentralized for it to be a practical choice, or existing natural fluoride levels were already ample, including Germany, Finland, Japan, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Denmark and at a time Israel. That doesn't mean they didn't find fluoridation useful, just that topical use is just as good. Personally, I dislike the idea of forcing everyone to use fluoridated products (by not providing alternatives, or by putting it in all the water) and would prefer if topical use were encouraged instead, but my preferences aside, fluoride has been proven to be beneficial to teeth. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoridation_by_country https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoridation_by_country [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoridation_by_country#cite_note-EU2011-16 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoridation_by_country#cite_n...
- lootsauce 7y ago
  Being effective is not the same as being safe. Has it been disproven to cause any number of potential long term ill effects? Just two of which are suggested connections to weakening of bones and cognitive impairment / alzheimer's. This is the old debate over the precautionary principle I suppose, but it bolsters the argument for personal discretion rather than heavy handed imposition of "treatment."
  - dkersten 7y ago
    I'm not arguing that either way, I'm just pointing out that the often repeated mantra of "Europe has banned fluoridated water" or the many variants of that which I keep hearing are not exactly correct.
gingabriska 7y ago
When I lived in Europe, I always drank bottled mineral water.

dkersten 7y ago

I'm no fan of mass medication without a choice (or supplementation, whatever), but what you state is not the full story: > They don't have it in Europe and have dental health that's just fine. Much of Europe (not all) doesn't fluoridate their water, but they DO fluoridate salt and milk, or have high levels of natural fluoride in their water. To quote wikipedia[1] (yes, yes, I know, although they at least have a citation[2] for it): > the European Commission finds no advantage to water fluoridation compared with topical use > Community water fluoridation is rare in Continental Europe with 97–98% choosing not to fluoridate drinking water. Fluoridated salt and milk is promoted in some European countries instead. Water fluoridation has been replaced by other modes in many countries where water supplies are too decentralized for it to be a practical choice, or existing natural fluoride levels were already ample, including Germany, Finland, Japan, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Denmark and at a time Israel. That doesn't mean they didn't find fluoridation useful, just that topical use is just as good. Personally, I dislike the idea of forcing everyone to use fluoridated products (by not providing alternatives, or by putting it in all the water) and would prefer if topical use were encouraged instead, but my preferences aside, fluoride has been proven to be beneficial to teeth. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoridation_by_country https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoridation_by_country [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoridation_by_country#cite_note-EU2011-16 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoridation_by_country#cite_n...

lootsauce 7y ago
Being effective is not the same as being safe. Has it been disproven to cause any number of potential long term ill effects? Just two of which are suggested connections to weakening of bones and cognitive impairment / alzheimer's. This is the old debate over the precautionary principle I suppose, but it bolsters the argument for personal discretion rather than heavy handed imposition of "treatment."
- dkersten 7y ago
  I'm not arguing that either way, I'm just pointing out that the often repeated mantra of "Europe has banned fluoridated water" or the many variants of that which I keep hearing are not exactly correct.

gingabriska 7y ago

When I lived in Europe, I always drank bottled mineral water.