According to Iqaluit Dental Clinic, for the past few years, there have been many rumours surrounding fluoride in toothpaste. Some say fluoride is dangerous for your kids while others say it comes with some serious side effects. Let’s differentiate fact from fiction and bust those myths.
The Myths
1. It’s unnatural – A lot of influencers and forums on the internet claim that fluoride is unnatural and hence should not be used for dental care. However, fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral that can be found everywhere from beer and fish to natural water bodies. Research shows that adding fluoride to drinking water can reduce tooth decay-related conditions by 25 per cent.
Most dentists and the World Health Organization endorse the positive role of fluoride in dental health. Even if fluoride wasn’t natural and still showed enough merits for maintaining good oral health without any significant demerit, it would be widely adopted.
2. It is bad for your health – There’s no truth to this myth. Instead, fluoride is essential for maintaining good oral health. When your child uses fluoride toothpaste, the mineral helps to make their developing teeth tougher before it enters the mouth. Even after the teeth are fully through, continue to strengthen the adult teeth and make them more resistant to decay.
Fluoride is also a great agent that participates in the cycle of demineralization and remineralization. This process happens when you consume food high in sugar. During the process of remineralization, fluoride helps to make the mineral deposit on the teeth harder so that your child has nice and strong teeth.
3. Fluoridated water is harmful – In most developed and upper-middle-income countries including the US, the UK, Australia, China, Israel, Ireland, Chile, and more have fluoridated water supplies. In areas with fluoridated water, kids under 5 years old are around 15 per cent lee likely to have tooth decay compared to areas that don’t get fluoridated water.
Moreover, areas with fluoridated water witness 45 per cent fewer hospital admissions for dental decay. Both the UK and World Health Organization recommend 1.5 milligrams of fluoride per litre of water in the public water system to reduce tooth decay. Excess of anything can be harmful and when there’s an excess amount of fluoride in your water supply it can cause serious issues.
4. It causes cancer – This is one of the most harmful myths surrounding fluoride. It’s very harmful since it scares people and discourages them from using fluoride toothpaste that’s essential for their kid’s oral health and development. There is no research or scientific evidence that says fluoride is carcinogenic or linked to cancer in any way. Instead, it is a necessity for you and your kid’s teeth.
Conclusion
Iqaluit Dental Clinic suggests that you do your own research on fluoride instead of believing in myths and rumours on social media. Most dentists recommend fluoride toothpaste for good reason and there’s substantial research and evidence that shows fluoride’s effectiveness in fighting tooth decay in both kids and adults.