Please tell me where I went wrong?

Before getting all freaked out please read:

“Did you know that only 2/3 of U.S. cities and towns add fluoride to their drinking water. The other 1/3 of all cities and towns oppose the use of fluoride. About 60% of all public drinking water is fluoridated.”

So, please check before assuming that fluoride is in your water!

Also Fluoride is needed by the body and can be obtained from fruits, veggies, fish and other food sources. And I believe brushing with Fluoride toothpaste is needed
for most, at least for those who show no toxicity symptoms and suffer with dental carries.

The rest of the article, which is against fluoride added to water…

Fluoride is added to drinking water and toothpaste to prevent tooth decay. Since fluoride was first introduced into drinking water, our consumption of fluoride has increased considerably. You and your children may be ingesting more fluoride than you realize.

The jury is still weighing the benefits of fluoride against its risks. No one questions that fluoride has significantly reduced tooth decay. No one questions that too much fluoride is a health risk. The concern today is whether the risks of fluoride use are completely known, and whether those risks justify the benefits of reduced tooth decay. Some researchers say, “Fluoridation could turn out to be one of the top 10 mistakes of the 20th century.” On the other hand, the Center for Disease control said that the fluoridation of community water was one of the top 10 public health achievements of the 20th century.

Fluoride is a Poison

Did you know that only 2/3 of U.S. cities and towns add fluoride to their drinking water. The other 1/3 of all cities and towns oppose the use of fluoride. About 60% of all public drinking water is fluoridated.

There are serious health risks from water fluoridation. Too much fluoride can actually damage tooth enamel and cause dental fluorosis, which is the yellowing and mottling of tooth enamel. Excessive use of fluoride has also been linked to bone cancer, lower IQ and osteoporosis. Adverse thyroid functioning is also linked to fluoride.

Have you read the warning label on every tube of fluoridated toothpaste? It says: "Keep out of reach of children under 6 years of age. If more than is used for brushing is accidentally swallowed, get medical help or contact a Poison Control Center right away." If you use fluoride toothpaste, teach your children to use only a pea-sized amount and never to swallow it.

Fluoride is a poison. In high concentration, forms of fluoride are used to kill rats and crop-eating insects. City employees who work with water fluoridation must wear protective clothing and respirators. Long-term exposure to fluoride causes bone disease, skin lesions and death.

Most cities do not use pharmaceutical grade sodium fluoride in their drinking water. They use instead hydrofluorosilicic acid (or its salt). This is concentrated directly from the smokestack scrubbers during the production of phosphate fertilizer. It is shipped to water treatment plants and trickled directly into the drinking water. It is an industrial grade fluoride and it is contaminated with trace amounts of heavy metals such as lead, arsenic and radium. Many scientist feel that these heavy metals are also harmful to humans at the levels that are being added to fluoridate the drinking water. In addition, using hydrofluorosilicic acid has an added risk of increasing lead accumulation in children.

Which works better: fluoride in drinking water or fluoride in toothpaste?

Fluoride in drinking water was successful in reducing cavities, often by 70% over a span of 15 years. However, when the decision was made to add fluoride to drinking water, fluoride toothpaste was not available. Scientists now know that fluoride does not have to be ingested to prevent cavities. They believe that fluoride works as well when it is applied directly to the teeth, as in toothpaste. The use of fluoride in drinking water is only slightly more successful than use of fluoridated toothpaste alone. In the drinking water, it accounts for 18% less tooth decay in children, which represents ½ of a cavity.

Fluoride serves no known nutritional purpose and is not required for human growth.
The EPA Sets Standards for Fluoride Exposure The Environmental Protection Agency says that the maximum limit for safe exposure to fluoride is 4 mg/L, which is 4 parts per million. The recommended use of fluoride in water depends on the climate. In warm weather the fluoride limit is lower, because people drink more water. The fluoride limit averages about 1mg/L, which is 1 part per million.

Does your drinking water exceed that standard of 1part per million? Check your city at the Center for Disease Control voluntary database.

http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov

If the fluoride in your city drinking water is more than 2 parts per million, it is recommended that you find an alternate source of water for your children.

Distilled water contains no fluoride. Reverse-osmosis filters will remove most of the fluoride from your tap water. However, many other household water filters do not remove fluoride.

Are your children getting too much fluoride?

There are many sources of fluoride in our diet. Fruits and vegetables naturally contain some fluoride, depending on the level in the soil where they grow. Because fruits and vegetables are also processed with fluoridated water, their fluoride levels have increased.

Fluoride is in the teeth and bones of fish and animals. Processed food containing fish bones and chicken bones is high in fluoride. The chicken in baby food that has been mechanically boned contains bone dust and is thus high in fluoride. A single serving of chicken sticks alone would provide about half of a child's upper limit of safety for fluoride. Baby food made from chicken has over 4ppm of fluoride.

Beverages, such as soda pop, fruit juice, beer and wine, also contain fluoride. Grape juice, for example, has 2.4ppm fluoride. Some instant tea contains 6.5ppm of fluoride, well over the 4.0ppm recommended maximum. You can find more data on the presence of fluoride in common foods and beverages at:

http://www.fluoridealert.org/f-concentrations.data.htm



Pesticide residues on fruits and vegetables contain fluoride. However, organic fruits and vegetables are grown with a minimum of such pesticides. Whenever possible, use organic fruits and vegetables to reduce fluoride intake.

It is important to prepare powdered baby formula with non-fluoridated water.

Fluoride pills and drops are generally felt to be an unnecessary risk, although they are often prescribed for children who live in communities with non-fluoridated water.

In conclusion, there are valid concerns that the fluoridation of drinking water is more harmful than beneficial.



http://www.surfersam.com/articles/fluoride-drinking-water.htm



Too much fluoride

Can lead to a condition called dental fluorosis, or mottling of the teeth. The main symptom of this condition is teeth that start to yellow. Too much fluoride can also cause bones and teeth to become brittle. Brittle bones are more likely to develop fractures. Excessive levels of fluoride over time can also lead to hyperthyroidism, a condition in which the body produces excessive amounts of thyroid hormones. Much of the debate over adding fluoride water involves the potential risks associated with over-consumption of this mineral.

Fluoride deficiency

The most obvious sign that a person has a fluoride deficiency is the appearance of dental carries, better known as cavities and weakened tooth enamel. Brittle bones which generally are caused by bone demineralization are also a symptom of fluoride deficiency. This situation can lead to a higher likelihood of developing bone fractures and possibly even osteoporosis.



http://www.healthylivinganswers.com/vitamins/fluoride-mineral.html



Minerals: Overview Summary

Minerals are essential for good health. The body utilizes over 80 minerals for maximum function. Because our plants and soils are so nutrient depleted, even if we eat the healthiest foods, we are not getting all the minerals we need. Evidence of mineral malnutrition are various minor and serious health conditions such as energy loss, premature aging, diminished senses, and degenerative diseases like osteoporosis, heart disease, and cancer. In many cases, these could be prevented with proper mineral supplementation. The more you learn about the benefits of minerals, the more you will be able to take charge of your own health!

Every living cell depends on minerals for proper structure and function. Minerals are needed for the formation of blood and bones, the proper composition of body fluids, healthy nerve function, proper operation of the cardiovascular system, among others. Like vitamins, minerals function as coenzymes, enabling the body to perform its functions including energy production, growth and healing. Because all enzyme activities involve minerals, they are essential for the proper utilization of vitamins and other nutrients. Nutritionally, minerals are grouped into two categories: bulk or essential minerals, also called macrominerals, and trace minerals or microminerals. Macrominerals such as calcium and magnesium are needed by the body in larger amounts. Although only minute quantities of trace minerals are needed, they are nevertheless important for good health. Microminerals include boron, chromium, iron, zinc, and many others.

Three basic classifications of minerals exist. They are "metallic minerals," "chelated minerals," and "colloidal minerals." Metallic minerals are found in their pure elemental form or as salts such as sodium chloride and zinc sulfate. They are the most commonly used form in nutritional supplements, esspecially for the essential minerals, because larger amounts are indicated. They are generally the least expensive form of minerals but their primary disadvantage is that their degree of absorption is the least of all three forms. Although they have their place, metallic minerals do not represent the full spectrum of all the trace minerals that are known to be of value in human nutrition.

Chelated minerals are the next step up the ladder in so far as the body's ability to assimilate. The term "chelate" originates from a Greek word that means "claw." In this process, be it either in the laboratory or in nature itself, a metallic mineral is "chelated" with an amino acid. The amino acid actually surrounds the metallic mineral like a claw and thereby helps to solubilize it, making the "mineral chelate" more bioavailable or useful to the body. Examples of chelated minerals are the magnesium aspartate (magnesium chelated with the natural aspartic acid) and chromium picolinate (chromium chelated with picolinic acid). In many cases, chelated minerals are about 40% more efficient in regards to absorption and assimilation into the body than metallic minerals.

Colloidal minerals are those that occur in nature in the colloid state. That is, they are minute particles that either are or can be easily dispersed in a medium such as water. In that they are made up of such small particles, there is a major increase in surface area giving them greater exposure to the liquid or solvent they are to be distributed in. This results in increased solubility, bioavailability, absorption, and usefulness to the body. Plant-derived colloidal minerals provide the best of all forms of minerals not only because of this increased solubility but also because they are associated with natural plant tissue. This gives them all the advantages of chelated and metallic minerals and more!

Minerals: Summary Descriptions

Fluoride

Recommended Dietary Allowances: adults, 1.5 mg to 4 mg

Fluoride, a natural form of the mineral fluorine, is required for healthy teeth and bones. It helps form the tough enamel that protects teeth from decay and cavities, and increases bone strength and stability. Since the 1950's, many U.S. cities have added fluoride to municipal drinking water at a ratio of about 1 part per million (ppm), or 1 mg per liter. Many believe that this practice is responsible for the 40 to 70 percent reduction in tooth decay that dentists have since observed. Fluoride's decay-reducing effects are strongest if children are exposed to the mineral while their teeth are forming. Fluoride toothpaste is helpful, but is not nearly as effective as regularly ingested fluoride. Fluoridated water provides most individuals with at least 1 mg of fluoride daily. Other dietary sources include: dried seaweed, seafood - especially sardines and salmon - cheese, meat, tea, and high-quality multinutrient supplements.



http://www.aomega.com/minerals/minerals.htm