Here's what could happen to your teeth if fluoride disappears from drinking water

Dental experts are sounding the alarm about removing fluoride from drinking water. But how much of an impact will the ban actually have?

- ANA SANTI

Utah became the first US state to ban fluoride from being added to public drinking water in March this year. Soon after, Florida followed suit, with US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr telling the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to stop recommending fluoridation nationwide.

As opposition to water fluoridation in the US rises, scientists are concerned that its removal will lead to a sharp increase in tooth decay, costing the states billions of dollars and disproportionately affecting poorer communities.

With states such as Nebraska, Kentucky and Louisiana looking to remove fluoride from their water, the question of how quickly this change will affect Americans has been raised.

FLUORIDE CONCERNS

Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral found in fresh water and was first added to community drinking water, in controlled amounts, in the US in 1945 as an effective way to help prevent tooth decay.

In 1999, the CDC stated that, by helping to strengthen developing baby teeth and protect them into adulthood, community water fluoridation was one of the 20th century's greatest public health achievements.

In recent years though, the addition of fluoride to foods, milk and dental products such as toothpaste and mouthwash, has led to concerns that the combined total intake of fluoride per person may exceed safe amounts.

The National Toxicology Program (NTP) in the US released a review of published scientific studies on the links between fluoride and neurodevelopment and cognition. The findings showed that higher levels of fluoride exposure, such as drinking water containing more than 1.5mg of fluoride per litre, were associated with a lower IQ in children.