Why Tap Water Can Harm Your Kids

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Why Tap Water Can Harm Your Kids

Posted by: Dr. Mercola
August 19 2008 | 31,009 views

Dr. Vyvyan Howard, president of the International Society of Doctors for the Environment, explains his concerns about water fluoridation. Dr. Howard is a medical toxico-pathologist who specializes in the impact of toxins on fetal and infant health. In this video, Dr. Howard discusses his concerns about fluoride's impact on infant health.

Dr. Howard is one of over 1,750 professional from the medical, scientific and environmental communities to sign a statement calling for an end to water fluoridation worldwide.

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

If fluoride were necessary to prevent tooth decay -- the main reason why advocates defend its “necessity” in U.S. water supplies -- it would probably be found naturally in breast milk.

Yet, fluoride exists only in very low levels in breast milk, suggesting that nature is purposely keeping fluoride away from infants.

And once again, nature has proven to be wiser than the public health agencies, as fluoride is a toxic poison any way you look at it.

What Does the Science Say About Fluoride?

Many dentists still promote fluoride as the panacea for healthy teeth. And it’s in the majority of public water supplies in the United States just to prevent cavities.

Yet, data compiled by the World Health Organization shows no difference in tooth decay in countries that use fluoridated water compared with countries that don’t use fluoridated water.

But not only is fluoride not effective, it’s dangerous and quite capable of harming your health and the health of your children.

"Fluoride, the most consumed drug in the USA, is deliberately added to 2/3 of public water supplies theoretically to reduce tooth decay, but with no scientifically-valid evidence proving safety or effectiveness," says lawyer Paul Beeber, president of the New York State Coalition Opposed to Fluoridation.

Meanwhile, according to environmental reporter and director of New York University‘s Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program Dan Fagin, "There is no universally accepted optimal level for daily intake of fluoride."

The respected editors for Scientific American even recently reported that “scientific attitudes” about fluoridation may be shifting.

The American Dental Association, which has for many years been one of fluoride's biggest advocates, also alerted its members that parents of infants younger than a year old "should consider using water that has no or low levels of fluoride" when mixing baby formula.

The Many Health Risks of Fluoride

After analyzing hundreds of fluoride studies, researchers found that fluoride:

Alters endocrine function, especially in your thyroid
Causes dental fluorosis in young children
May lower IQ
May increase the risk of bone fractures

But that’s not all. According to Paul Connett, PhD:

1. Fluoride accumulates in your bones and makes them more brittle and prone to fracture. Lifetime exposure to fluoride will contribute to higher rates of hip fracture in the elderly.

2. Fluoride accumulates in your pineal gland, possibly lowering the production of melatonin, a very important regulatory hormone

3. There are serious concerns about a connection between fluoridation and the current epidemics of both arthritis and hypothyroidism.

4. In animal studies fluoride at 1 ppm in drinking water increases the uptake of aluminum into your brain.

5. Counties with 3 ppm or more of fluoride in their water have lower fertility rates.

6. The fluoridating agents most commonly used in the United States not only increase the uptake of lead into children's blood but are also associated with an increase in violent behavior.

Drugging the Entire Population

It may surprise you to learn that many European countries have banned water fluoridation. Yet, in the United States, you get it every time you take a sip of water, whether you like it or not.

This type of water fluoridation is unethical, according to Connett, because:

    1) It violates the individual's right to informed consent to medication.

    2) The municipality cannot control the dose of the patient.

    3) The municipality cannot track each individual's response.

    4) It ignores the fact that some people are more vulnerable to fluoride's toxic effects than others. Some people will suffer while others may benefit.

    5) It violates the Nuremberg code for human experimentation.

How did this happen?

As award-winning journalist Christopher Bryson revealed in his book The Fluoride Deception, there has been a multi-tiered effort -- or as Bryson says, an abuse of power -- by military and industry scientists and public health officials to shamelessly promote fluoride to the dentistry field and the American public with little regard to the implications it would have on human health.

Your Baby May be at Risk

Fluoride in your drinking water is one more reason why breastfeeding your infant is so essential. Nature has kept breast milk virtually fluoride-free for a reason.

If you are unable to breastfeed and are instead using formula, make sure the water you use is fluoride-free. Right now, the best way you can provide pure, fluoride-free water to your family is by using a reverse osmosis filter, which you can install in your home.

Even better, use this recipe to make homemade infant formula using raw milk and no water at all.

And whatever you do, avoid using “nursery water,” which is fluoridated water sold specifically for infants.

Keep in mind also that if you are a pregnant woman it is equally important for your water to be fluoride-free, as this chemical can harm your developing fetus.