MINNEAPOLIS— Brushing your teeth at the beginning and end of the day keeps them healthy. In between meals, drinking a glass of tap water, especially in Minnesota, can do the same.
Fluoride is a mineral that occurs naturally in fresh and salt water, but in much of the US, a small amount more is added at water treatment plants to help prevent tooth decay. Every day, bacteria in our mouths create acid that removes minerals from tooth enamel. Fluoride replaces these minerals, making teeth more resistant to the acid and in turn decay.
The CDC considers it one of the 10 major public health interventions of the 20th century that led to a dramatic decline in cavities after 1945, when community fluoridation began.
Minnesota has a law that requires community water systems to be treated with fluoride. According to the CDC, there are 4,491,474 people in the state served by a community water system in 2022. Of that number, 98.9% receive fluoridated water.
In Wisconsin, where each municipality decides whether to add fluoride, that number is 84%. It is significantly lower in other states such as Utah (43%), Montana (32.8%), and New Jersey (16.2%). Nationwide, 63% of the total population receives fluoridated water.
“The Department of Health says we need to add a minimum of 0.5 parts per million (ppm) and no more than 0.9 ppm, so we are aiming for 0.7 ppm,” said Justine Roe, water quality supervisor at St. Paul Regional Water Services.
That goal, 0.7 ppm, is the equivalent of three drops of water in a 55-gallon drum.
At the Fredrick Miller Spring in Eden Prairie, cars line up to load up on fresh spring water. They use it for drinking, cooking, watering plants and more. The water from the source is tested regularly, but has not been treated with anything, not even fluoride. That’s partly why some users visit Spring – because of health concerns related to fluoride.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is expected to join the Trump administration, believes fluoride can lead to a host of health problems and lays out his claims about fluorine removed from community water systems.
Earlier this year, a federal study found “with moderate confidence” that there is a link between higher levels of fluoride exposure and lower IQ in children.
It was based on findings from other countries such as China, India and Mexico, where some pregnant women, children and infants received fluoride levels that were twice the recommended limit for drinking water.
According to CBS News, the American Academy of Pediatrics has questioned the validity of the report, saying other reviews have reached different conclusions about the risks and benefits of fluoride. The AAP is among expert groups that continue to recommend the use of fluoride toothpaste, in combination with fluoridated water, to protect teeth from cavities.
Even if the Trump administration recommends removing fluoride, state and local governments will get the final say.
Fluoride is often an ingredient in toothpaste and mouthwash.
Jeff Wagner
