Fluoride remains a topical issue in the oral health realm around the world. Some sing its praises and a few do not. Fluoride is in the water supply here in Australia. Of course, if you don’t drink enough tap water downunder you might be missing out on the positive effects upon your oral health and that of your family.

“In Australia, community water fluoridation programs are considered a safe and effective way of reducing tooth decay across the population. Tooth decay is one of the most common health problems in Australia. It can cause pain, difficulty eating and sleeping, and may make people feel unhappy about their appearance. In Australia, dental health has improved since water fluoridation began in the 1950s. Compared to their parents’ generation, Australians born after 1970 (when the majority of water fluoridation programs commenced in Australia) have about half the level of tooth decay.”
– NRMHC.gov.au

So why aren’t we applying fluoride varnish to our kid’s teeth? Is another interesting question I have pondered of late. I have come across some interesting positive studies involving poorer kids in America and the application of fluoride varnish. Indeed, there are plans for a similar program down-under involving Indigenous kids. The fact of the matter is that dentistry is becoming too expensive for many Australians and they are suffering as a result.

Could Fluoride Varnish Be An Inexpensive Game Changer?

Most states in Australia offer subsidised dental care for children. It is a shame that Medicare does not cover dental for all Australians but such is life.

“Your child may be eligible to attend the public dental clinics for their dental care. In some states, there may also be a school dental service. If you get a government benefit, such as Family Tax Benefit A payments, your child may be able to use the Child Dental Benefits Schedule.

This is program provides children under 17 years with access to $1,095 of dental care. This can include: examinations, x-rays, professional dental clean, fissure sealants, fillings, root canal treatment, tooth extractions.
Children can get use the CDBS at public dental clinics and private dental clinics. You can check if your child is eligible using myGov.”
– Teeth.org.au

Fluoride Varnish As Caries Deterrent

Could fluoride varnish help more Australians prevent caries? Indeed, should it be more widely promoted and used as such by dental professionals downunder? Is it, perhaps, being used but not explicitly identified as such during dental treatments here in Australia? Would more Aussies attend the dentist more often and regularly if they were informed of the effectiveness of fluoride varnish treatments? I suggest that the answer to these questions is largely in the affirmative and more should be done to promote the use and successes of these treatments.

“Fluoride varnish contains 22.6 mg/mL / 22 600 ppm fluoride ion suspended in an alcohol and resin base. Many fluoride varnish products are available on the Australian market however only one is currently registered to prevent caries and treat dentine hypersensitivity. All other varnishes are currently only registered to treat dentine hypersensitivity.”
– Queensland Health

The Fluoride Controversy

“Most people assume that community water fluoridation (CWF)—adding fluoride to public drinking water supplies—is a safe and effective way to prevent cavities. After all, it has been endorsed by public health, dental and medical organisations since it was introduced 75 years ago.2 Today, about three-fourths of people in the United States and one-third of Canadians have fluoride added to their drinking water.”
– Till C, Green R. Controversy: The evolving science of fluoride: when new evidence doesn’t conform with existing beliefs. Pediatr Res. 2021 Nov;90(5):1093-1095. doi: 10.1038/s41390-020-0973-8. Epub 2020 May 22. PMID: 32443137; PMCID: PMC9922476.

This article goes on to say that we need to stay open to the results of scientific testing that may not always agree with the status quo about things. Confirmation bias can ignore data that does not conform with public health policy positions.

“Four high-quality, prospective birth cohort studies show that fetal exposure to fluoride is associated with diminished cognitive abilities. In November 2019, the National Toxicology Program released a draft report on fluoride concluding that fluoride is presumed to be a cognitive neuro-developmental hazard. This report was largely ignored by the critics of our study.”
– NCBI.gov

Social Media & The Fluoride Conspiracy

In the current era of social media hysteria, conspiracy theories around fluoride are, unfortunately, prevalent in America and to a lesser degree in parts of Australia. It seems that there are folk who are hell bent on having chemical villains in their lives being wielded by a deep state intent on hurting them and their families. Fluoride can be a damaging chemical to human beings when used in volumes capable of doing so. In my own experience, a little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing and this is often the case with folk on social media who do not have expertise in chemistry organic or otherwise. A deep seated belief in there being someone or something out to get them feeds on red flags like fluoride in the water. By the same token I would not be recommending that my pregnant wife or daughter drink a lot of tap water with fluoride in it during their pregnancy.
– Adelaide University

Refined Sugars In Manufactured Food & Drinks

Why aren’t we applying fluoride varnish to our kid’s teeth? Could it help Australians prevent caries? Should it be used more by dental professionals?

As a parent, I would be recommending that my children and everyone I care about would be as vigilant about the reduction of foods and drinks containing refined sugars from their diets.

For adults I would be warning about the amount of sugars in alcoholic drinks and soft drinks – these are oral health killers in the pH level of oral microbiomes.

Bad bacterium feeds on these unhealthy consumables and caries and gum disease will eventuate.

If you are going to avoid fluoride from your diet wherever possible, then, you sure better remove most processed foods and drinks as a priority from your intake too.

Over the years, I have had too many earnest conversations about the dangers of fluoride with individuals who are happily puffing way on a cigarette and guzzling a variety of alcoholic drinks whilst condemning fluoride.

The foolishness of us human beings and what we choose to see as the villains in our lives can rarely be underestimated.

If there is a conspiracy, refined sugar is the real culprit, with close to a half a billion diabetics globally. Fluoride, by contrast, is more of a chemical band-aid, than an out and out deep state measure to control the world.

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