The Elucidation of Fluoridation
Fluoride. What is it? A nutrient? A medication? A pollutant? Water fluoridation has been a popular matter that has been going on for years. Many cities have been implementing fluoride in public water systems and many have not. The reason behind water fluoridation is that can help tooth decay. But fluoride’s adverse effects prevent some cities from imposing this practice. Water fluoridation should not be implemented within public water systems due to its effects on health, its environmental impact, and it being an unethical health intervention.
Fluoride has gained its popularity in attempts to prevent tooth decay and dental caries, otherwise known as cavities. It has been incorporated into oral health products, …show more content…
“High content of fluoride in groundwater paves the way to excess fluoride in local food crops, consequently adding more fluoride to the systems of the consumers” (Dharmaratne). Food already contains fluoride due to its packaging process. This further contributes to why these added factors will increase fluoride to be present more throughout the environment. By incorporating water fluoridation, such water will have the ability to be spread throughout the environment. Plants when exposed to high amounts of fluoride cause harm to the leaf tissue, leading into discoloration of the plant. In an experiment conducted by Solberg et al., the pinus ponderosa plant was exposed the fluoride, and after 24 hours, the color changed from green to brown. “Fluoride entered the stomata, passes through tissues external to the vascular tissues, entered the vascular tissues, and was carried to the needle apex where it accumulated and caused tissue damage and collapsed” (Greenwood). Much of the water that has been treated with fluoride inevitably becomes wastewater that becomes renewed into the environment. Plants absorb this wastewater, gaining nutrients and high doses of fluoride. With fluoride being incorporated into water, it presents dangers to plants, acting as a pollutant for providing harmful concentrations to circulate within nature. This poses a threat towards farming. The …show more content…
“With base-case assumptions, the annual per person cost savings resulting from fluoridation ranged from $15.95 in very small communities to $18.62 in large communities” (Ko and Thiessen). The money saved preventing tooth decay can lessen the divide between those who cannot afford proper dental care. It has also been claimed that water fluoridation is ideal for dentistry. Since most dental appointments rarely occur, mainly ranging from two appointments per year, fluoridation is helpful in keeping teeth in healthy condition. But just because fluoridation seems economically reasonable at first, it is not reasonable in the long run. Fluoridation highers the risk of dental fluorosis. Thus, treatments for dental fluorosis can be more costly since restorative treatments are needed to treat fluorosis (Griffin). Choices are limited in treating fluorosis. For mild severity, repetitive bleaching can be done. For moderate severity, microabrasion, a procedure that can be done through abrasion of the outer enamel using an acidic agent. Such procedures range from 75-200 dollars (Denbesten and Li). For those that believe that treatments for dental fluorosis is costly, it can look cosmetically unappealing. Though money is saved through fluoridated water, it can cause additional expenses in the future. Yes, fluoridation can help prevent tooth decay and dental caries, but this method is only