Fluoride health effects debated after Calgary tooth decay study

The CalgaryEyeopener was flooded with calls this week from listeners voicing their concerns and questions about the possible health risks of fluoridated drinking water.

The debate over whether fluoride should be added to our drinking water was revivedby a new University of Calgary study.

The report says there's been a jump in tooth decay among children, since fluoride was removed from the city's water supply in 2011.

• Lack of fluoride in Calgary drinking water leads to rise in kids' tooth decay, study indicates
• Fluoride still routinely found in Calgary drinking water

Eyeopener host David Gray interviewedAlison White,a science educator at Telus Spark, to address those concerns.

Calgary Eyeopener7:30Fluoride in Our Water

Fluoride 101, A science educator joins us to explain what fluoride is if it's safe?

What is fluoride, exactly?

Fluoride is a charged particle (aka anion) of a naturally occurring element called fluorine, which is the 13th most abundant element in the world.

In other words, White explained, it's everywhere.

"Because of that charge on it, fluorine naturally hugs other elements in nature ... it's normally found with other things in minerals it's in earth's crust, in rocks, in water, in the air."

Is fluoride a drug?

"That is a good question," responded White.

"You can compare it with adding iodine to salt. We don't see a lot of people with goiters anymore, andthat's largely due to iodine being added to our foods and other things," she said.

"Fluoride isn't needed by, say, our thyroid in the same way that iodine is, but I wouldn't say it is a drug."

Is fluoride a chemical?

Yes, White said, "but in the same way that water is also a chemical, it's made up of molecules."

Fluoride occurs naturally at certain levels in Calgary, and the normal natural levels depend on the location.

"In some parts of the world [fluoride]is found in much higher quantities," said White."And that's where you do get into some trouble as with anythingquantity and concentration matters based on the best available scientific evidence."

What does the scientific research say?

Adding fluoride to public drinking waterhas been going on since the 1940s when U.S. citiesstarted adding it to the drinking water.

White said research accumulated by Health Canada,U.S. Center for Disease Control, World Health Organizationand others has notlinkedany negative health outcomes with fluoridatingdrinking water to recommended levels.

If fluoride issafe?

"Eating a big glob of toothpaste,you wouldn't want to be ingesting that every day, probablybecause of the fluoride, but also because of all the other things in there," answered White.

She likened it to chlorine in the water supply.

"You wouldn't want a really high amount of chlorine in there, but a certain amount keeps our water safe for us to drink."

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