CHILDREN AT RISK:

A multitude of studies are raising alarms about ongoing neurological damage.

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“Fluoride seems to fit in with lead, mercury, and other poisons that cause chemical brain drain.”

Philippe Grandjean, MD, PhD, Harvard study co-author, Danish National Board of Health consultant, co-editor of Environmental Health, author of over 500 scientific papers

There is now no question that fluoride is neurotoxic, damaging the brain and central nervous system, as documented by hundreds of recent studies. It can not be declared safe.

2006: The National Research Council published Fluoride in Drinking Water(1), the most authoritative review of fluoride’s toxicity. It stated unequivocally that “fluorides have the ability to interfere with the functions of the brain and the body.”

2012: A Harvard-funded meta-analysis(2) found that children ingesting higher levels of fluoride tested an average 7 IQ points lower in 26 out of 27 studies. Most had higher fluoride concentrations than in U.S. water, but many had total exposures to fluoride no more than what millions of Americans receive.

2017: A National Institutes of Health (NIH) - funded study(3) in Mexico covering 13 years found that every one milligram per liter (1 mg/L) increase in fluoride in pregnant women’s urine – approximately the difference caused by ingestion of fluoridated water(4) - was associated with a reduction of their children’s IQ by an average 5-6 points. Leonardo Trasande, a leading physician unaffiliated with the study, said it “raises serious concerns about fluoride supplementation in water.”(5)

2018: A Canadian study(6) found iodine-deficient adults (nearly 18% of the population) with higher fluoride levels had a greater risk of hypothyroidism (known to be linked to lower IQs). Author Ashley Malin said “I have grave concerns about the health effects of fluoride exposure.”(7)

2019: Another NIH-funded study(8) in the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics found every 1 mg/L increase in fluoride in Canadian pregnant women’s urine was linked to a 4.5 decrease in IQ in their male children. The physician editor of JAMA Pediatrics said “I would not have my wife drink fluoridated water”(9) if she was pregnant.

2019: A Canadian study(10) found a nearly 300% higher risk of ADHD for children living in fluoridated areas. This reinforced earlier studies linking fluoride to ADHD in Mexico (2018)(11) and the U.S. (2015).(12)

2019: Another NIH-funded study(13) in Canada found that babies fed formula mixed with fluoridated water averaged 4 IQ points less than those mixed with non-fluoridated water. Losses of non-verbal IQ were even more serious, an average of 9 points.

2019: A systematic review of 149 human studies and 339 animal studies by the U.S. National Toxicology Program(14) concluded that “fluoride is presumed to be a cognitive neurodevelopmental hazard to humans.” The report is still in draft form, but NTP also said there is little chance they will change their finding.

References can be found here.

Find out more on the Fluoride Action Network.