Fact-checking fluoridation PR of Johnny Johnson

Fluoridationists bend the truth 

Johnny Johnson, President of the American Fluoridation Society and ardent fluoridation lobbyist,  used misleading and sometimes dishonest information in his pro-fluoridation presentation to the Missouri Oral Health Coalition April 24, 2024, according to the slide below  

His deceptive list of "false claims by fluoridation opponents" is corrected below this slide from his presentation:

Johnson claims it's false that no toxicological testing has been conducted on fluoride. The Truth:

1) The most used fluoridation chemical, hydrofluosilicic acid, has never been safety tested in animals or humans, according to the US National Toxicology Program.  It was nominated for testing which never occurred.

Johnson claims it's false that the American Dental Association (ADA) says fluoridated water shouldn't be used in making infant formula.  The truth:

2) The American Dental Association says "If your baby is primarily fed infant formula, using fluoridated water might increase the chance for mild enamel fluorosis [white spotted permanent teeth]"

In 2006, the American Dental Association sent out an e-gram "If using a [infant formula] product that needs to be reconstituted, parents and caregivers should consider using water that has no or low levels of fluoride"

Johnson claims that fluorosis is a toxic effect are false:  The truth:

3) Fluoride Toxicity from Medscape "Fluoride toxicity is characterized by a variety of signs and symptoms...Long-term exposure to fluoride through elevated levels in drinking water leads to skeletal and dental fluorosis."  (70%of US children and adolescents are afflicted with dental fluorosis - some of itmoderate/severe)

Johnson claims it's false to connect fluoride to ADHD.  The truth:

4) Fluoride and ADHD - Conclusions: The present review suggests that early exposure to fluoride may have neurotoxic effects on neurodevelopment affecting behavioral, cognitive and psychosomatic symptoms related to ADHD diagnosis. However, due to the heterogeneity of the studies included, current evidence does not allow to conclusively confirm that fluoride exposure is specifically linked to ADHD development. (Fluoride Exposure and ADHD: A Systematic Review of Epidemiological Studies)

Johnson makes you doubt fluoride's link to Alzheimer's. The truth

5) Fluoride and Alzheimer's Potential Role of Fluoride in the Etiopathogenesis of Alzheimer's Disease (International Journal of Molecular Sciences)

Johnson falsely claims that fluoride doesn't harm the kidney, the immune system and other systems.  The truth:

6) Fluoride's link to kidney disease is over 100 years old Even dentists with the CDC's oral health division have private fears over fluoride's kidney effects, according to freedom of information attained documents.

There is a strong connection between fluoride and adverse thyroid effects and other endocrine effects. Fluoride is especially toxic to babies' developing brains.

Johnson is heavy on name-calling and light on science.   He, not we, always brings up the word conspiracy.  The truth:

7) It's not a conspiracy.  However, hydrofluosilicic acid and sodium fluoride are toxin-laced waste products of phosphate fertilizer manufacturing which are never purified before being added into drinking water. In 1983, Rebecca Hammer, Deputy Assistant Administrator For Water, US EPA stated:

     “In regard to the use of fluosilicic acid as a source of fluoride for fluoridation, this agency regards such use as        an ideal environmental solution to a long-standing problem. By recovering by-product fluosilicic acid from              fertilizer manufacturing, water and air pollution are minimised” and water utilities have a low-cost source of            fluoride available to them." See letter to Leslie A Russell 30 March 1983 

Johnson wants you to believe fluoridation is still necessary even though cavity rates have declined equally in fluoridated and non-fluoridated countries.  That just doesn't make sense:

8) NYS Dept of Health statistics show there is no correlation between the fluoridation rate of a county and tooth decay rates or to fewer dental-related hospital ER visits for toddlers

Johnson wants you to believe that no one is allergic or sensitive to fluoride. The truth:

9) "Some Individuals Appear To Be Highly Sensitive To Fluoride As Shown By Case Studies And Double-Blind Studies."  In one study, which lasted 13 years, the results showed that about 1% of patients given 1.0 mg of fluoride each day developed negative reactions. The Untold Story Of Fluoridation: Revisiting The Changing Perspectives

Johnson wants you to believe there's no evidence that fluoride is linked to thyroid disease.  The truth:

10) According to the US National Research Council 2006, there is substantial evidence that fluoride exposure can impact thyroid function in some individuals 

Johnson wants you to believe that ingested fluoride is necessary when it's not. 

11) According to the CDC's MMWR 2001 report "The prevalence of dental caries in a population is not inversely related to the concentration of fluoride in enamel, and a higher concentration of enamel fluoride is not necessarily more efficacious in preventing dental caries." and

"Saliva is a major carrier of topical fluoride. The concentration of fluoride in ductal saliva, as it is secreted from salivary glands, is low — approximately 0.016 parts per million (ppm) in areas where drinking water is fluoridated and 0.006 ppm in nonfluoridated areas. This concentration of fluoride is not likely to affect cariogenic activity."

Johnson says fluoride is not a drug.

12) The CDC says: "It is not CDC’s task to determine what levels of fluoride in water are safe."  The EPA regulates fluoride in water as a contaminant to protect bone and tooth damage.  EPA is was sued to acknowledge fluoride's neurological effects.  The Judge ruled that fluoride at levels added to water supplies (0.7 mg/L) poses a risk to babies' developing brains. We are awaiting EPA action. The FDA labels fluoride supplements as "unapproved drugs" because no safety & efficacy studies were ever conducted on sodium fluoride.

Johnson downplays the results of Cochrane report.  The truth:

13) After reviewing all available fluoridation studies, the independent and trusted UK-based Cochrane group of researchers could not find any quality evidence to prove fluoridation changes the "existing differences in tooth decay across socioeconomic groups." Neither could they find valid evidence that fluoride reduces adults' cavity rates nor that fluoridation cessation increases tooth decay. It was published in 2015

Fluoridation may reduce cavities in children (2 primary teeth or 1 permanent tooth). But Cochrane cautions these studies have "high risk of bias" and were mostly done before preventive measures were widespread, e.g. fluoridated toothpaste and sealants.

Two more recent studies, CATFISH and LOTUS, published in 2022 and 2024, respectively, show fluoridation has little or no benefit in modern times.

Johnson admits that fluoridation chemicals aren't pharmaceutical grade.

Because it's illegal to emit fluoride into the atmosphere, it's filtered out from the smokestacks of phosphate fertilizer manufacturing along with trace amounts of lead, arsenic and other toxins, trucked as hazardous material, then injected unpurified into drinking water. See:  Fact Sheet on Fluoridation Products and Fluoride.

14) No fluoride, in any form, should be injected into public water supplies.  Fluoride isn't a nutrient or essential for decay-free teeth.  Consuming a fluoride-free diet doesn't cause cavities.  Fluoride is a drug with adverse side effects.

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Fluoride Abundant in Foods, Beverages, Dental Products; Fluoridation Unnecessary

Total fluoride intake should be determined before prescribing more, reported former New York State Department of Health Dental Director, J. Kumar, He wrote: “Because of the availability of fluoride from multiple sources, practitioners should prescribe other forms of fluoride therapy based on an understanding of patients’ total exposure to fluoride and the need for it,” (NYS Dental Journal February 1998). Few dentists, if any including him, heed that advice.

The American Dental Association concurs: "It also is critical that the dentist assess a child’s total fluoride exposure from all sources (beverages, food, toothpaste, supplements, topical applications and so forth..." (Journal of the American Dental Association 2014)

Never is fluoride intake tallied when communities are pressured to continue or start fluoridation. Legislators should know much fluoride children already ingest before feeding them more via their water supply. 

The daily upper limits (UL) for fluoride are listed below, according to the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements (Taking more than the UL can be harmful and not recommended) 

Life Stage	Upper Limit
Birth to 6 months	0.7 mg
Infants 7–12 months	0.9 mg
Children 1–3 years	1.3 mg

Fluoride sources are many:

Absent from labels, fluoride is in virtually all foods and beverages, including, soda, baby foods and all infant formulas, It’s high in tea (up to 6 mg/L, according to the US National Institutes of Health), ocean fish and soy products. And, because of fluoride-containing pesticide residues, all grapes and its products (raisins, juice, wine, jellies, jams) have a significant fluoride content. (Cryolite, the fluoride-containing pesticide used on grapes was voluntarily withdrawn from the market by the manufacturer in 2021)

EPA allows extremely high amounts of fluoride pesticide residues on foods  See "Fluoride tolerances approved by US EPA as of July 15, 2005"

Fluoride is even in chocolate, french fries, sea salt, Himalayan salt, and ready-to-drink coffee (up to 1.5 mg/L)

Foods made with mechanically separated (boned) chicken, such as canned meats, hot dogs, and infant foods, also add fluoride to the diet (J Agric Food Chem Sept 2001) "A single serving of chicken sticks alone would provide about half of a child's upper limit of safety for fluoride," the researchers report.

Fluoride ingested daily from toothpaste ranges from 1/4 to 1/3 milligram (National Institutes of Health) “Gels used by dentists are typically applied one to four times a year and can lead to ingestions of 1.3 to 31.2 mg fluoride each time.” 

"Following Silver Diamine Fluoride  application, the serum fluoride concentrations ranged from 6 to 36ng/mL(0.006 to 0.036 ppm)"

Tooth filling material - glass ionomer cement (GIC) leaches out fluoride over time. 

Fluoride is in 20% of medicines, food packaging and inhaled from air pollution 

Other sources come from feed regimens of animal products, animal products; food storage containers (Teflon-coated containers); and food packaging (migration of perfluorochemicals into food).

Paper cups lined with water-proofing chemicals give off fluoride ions, when exposed to hot liquids. And Paper straws contain fluorinated compounds. 

Some calcium supplements contain fluoride

"eggshells also contain trace amounts of minerals that promote bone health, such as strontium, fluoride, magnesium, and selenium...their powdered form is used in dietary supplements"

Fluoride in other sources, according to "A Concise Overview Of Fluoride Contamination And Its Adverse Effects On Human Health And Plant Biochemistry," (European Chemical Bulletin 2020)

Various spices, including Almond, Garlic, Ginger, Coriander, Cumin Seeds, Turmeric, and Black Salt, are known to contain fluoride. The fluoride concentrations in these spices are as follows: Coriander at 2.3%, Cumin Seeds at 1.8%, Ginger at 2.0%, and Garlic at 5.0% (Mahapatra, 2007).

Additionally, nuts and oilseeds such as almond, coconut, mustard oil, and groundnut exhibit elevated levels of fluoride. The fluoride concentrations in these items are 4.0% for Almond, 4.4% for Coconut, 5.7% for Mustard Seeds, and 5.1% for Groundnut (Mahapatra, 2007)

Human activities such as industrialization, motorization, fluoridating drinking water sources, fluoridating dental goods, refrigerants, and fire extinguishers, among others, can lead to man-made fluoride contamination," (International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology)

How much is too much? 

According to the National Academy of Sciences, “without causing unwanted side effects including moderate dental fluorosis,” (yellow splotched teeth), the adequate daily intake of fluoride, from all sources, should not exceed: (But does) 

 -- 0.01 mg/day for 0 – 6-month-olds (which is in every infant formula – concentrated or not) 

-- 0.5 mg/day for 7 through 12 months 

-- 0.7 mg/day for 1 – 3-year-olds 

-- 1.1 mg/day for 4 – 8 year olds 

This is what moderate dental fluorosis looks like, according to the US Centers for Disease Control 

The US Department of Health and Human Services (1991) estimated that total fluoride exposure in fluoridated communities ranges from 1.6 to 6.6 mg/day 

Further, parents need to know that fluoride supplements have “not been found by FDA to be safe and effective.” 

No evidence proves anyone is or ever was fluoride-deficient. Fluoride isn’t a nutrient or essential for decay-free teeth – meaning that fluoride-free diets do not cause cavities. Fluoride is a drug with side effects. In fact, 70% of US kids are fluoride overdosed and afflicted with dental fluorosis – white spotted, yellow, brown and/or pitted teeth which created a lucrative market for cosmetic dentistry because fluoride is everywhere. But tooth decay is still epidemic 

The EPA regulates water fluoride levels to protect against fluoride-caused bone damage. So It's important to know that fluoride concentration in drinking water does not equate to an individual's daily dose. Fluoridation should never begin without fore knowledge of the community's fluoride intake from all sources.

Foods originating from Mexico have higher concentrations of fluoride than those found in US foods

FLUORIDE SOURCES IN THE ENVIRONMENT

According to "Fluoride contamination, consequences and removal techniques in water: a review," in the journal Environmental Science: Advances (Issue 5, 2022),

"The sources of fluoride in the environment include industrial plants, aluminum smelters producing glass brick, hydrofluoric acid, tile works and phosphate fertilizer plastic factories, textile dyeing, and industries that consume high sulfur non-coking coal for thermal power. 

Currently, high-tech companies developing semiconductors and integrated circuits produce significant fluoride-containing industrial wastewater.

Cigarettes, which contain an average of 236 ppm fluoride, play a significant role in human fluoride consumption. 

Teflon-coated cookware may potentially increase the fluoride absorption in humans. The fluoride concentrations in Teflon-coated cookware is as high as almost 3 ppm, whereas it is lower in aluminum cookware. 

Also, the fluoride concentrations are high in stainless steel and Pyrex ware, although to a lower extent. In normal and high quantities, fluoride in water may cause aluminum to leach from cooking utensils and copper from pipework."

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