An Environmental History of Teeth: Fluoridating Water to Combat Tooth Decay?
Zelko, Frank
An Environmental History of Teeth: Fluoridating Water to Combat Tooth Decay? - 2025.
28
The mouth is an ecosystem in its own right. And this ecosystem has a history. This article traces that history from the Paleolithic era to the present day, focusing in particular on the impact of water fluoridation on teeth. The development of dental caries is correlated with glucose consumption: they appeared with the consumption of cereals from the Neolithic period onwards, and multiplied with the consumption of sugar from the 19th century onwards. To address this, rather than changing diets and thereby challenging the established agricultural system, authorities, particularly in English-speaking countries, opted to add fluoride—a residue from the fertilizer industry—to drinking water. However, while fluoridating water helps reduce tooth decay, it has been shown that, due to fluoride being a neurotoxic, it also has adverse effects on human health.
An Environmental History of Teeth: Fluoridating Water to Combat Tooth Decay? - 2025.
28
The mouth is an ecosystem in its own right. And this ecosystem has a history. This article traces that history from the Paleolithic era to the present day, focusing in particular on the impact of water fluoridation on teeth. The development of dental caries is correlated with glucose consumption: they appeared with the consumption of cereals from the Neolithic period onwards, and multiplied with the consumption of sugar from the 19th century onwards. To address this, rather than changing diets and thereby challenging the established agricultural system, authorities, particularly in English-speaking countries, opted to add fluoride—a residue from the fertilizer industry—to drinking water. However, while fluoridating water helps reduce tooth decay, it has been shown that, due to fluoride being a neurotoxic, it also has adverse effects on human health.
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