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Fluoride in Water - A Health Risk?

By Lauren Hobbes
Jan 13, 2009
Fluoride in water has become a hotly debated topic, and for good reason. It is commonly added to the public water supply, as it is believed to be beneficial in preventing cavities. While this sounds helpful, the flip side of the argument is that fluoride is also believed by many to be a health risk. You should definitely learn a little bit more about this issue so you can understand whether fluoride in drinking water is something you want to tolerate for yourself and your family. If you decide you are against ingesting fluoride you can look for a home water filter that removes it.

The addition of fluoride to water in the U.S. began in the 1940s, following studies of children in a region where water is naturally fluoridated. (Source: Wikipedia) It was meant to be a revolution in intelligent public health, by preventing dental problems in children and improving dental health at a low cost for the masses. At that time, there were no known ill effects from excessive fluoride ingestion, except for flourosis (a harmless staining of the teeth).

Fluoridation is accomplished by adding one of three compounds to the water:
hydrofluosilic acid, sodium silicofluoride, or sodium fluoride. A majority of the fluoride is the least expensive kind to produce, hydrofluosilic acid. This is not a pharmaceutical grade of fluoride: because it is derived from the waste byproduct of fertilizer manufacturing, it often also contains heavy metals such as lead and arsenic, which of course are highly toxic. I don't know about you, but this doesn't sound like something I want to be drinking.

There is a lot of information online about fluoride, on both sides of the controversial argument. After research, if you decide you don't want to be drinking fluoridated water, then consider purchasing a high quality home water filter.

If you are looking for a home water filter to remove contaminants, chemicals, parasites, and other undesirable elements, then do some careful research on-line so you will understand the different filter systems that are available and the pros and cons of each one. Compare the performance data sheet that comes with each model, so you can easily see at a glance which filters filter out each specific contaminant, at what level, and at what price.

Healthy drinking water for your family is extremely important. There are many potentially harmful contaminants in water that you need to be aware of. Fluoride in water is only one thing you need to consider, there are also chemicals, parasites, drugs in water, and more nasty things. Please take a few minutes to educate yourself, as I have, so you can make an informed decision.
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