Does Fluoride Lower IQ in Children?
- Dr. Pearl E. Whites
- Jun 1
- 3 min read
CNN wrote a seemingly home-run article stating children chronically consuming 1.5mg/L+ of fluoride a day will cause IQ to drop 2-5 points. Are children in the USA at risk to consume fluoride in excess and does fluoride actually lower IQ?
Apples to Apples
There are several ways to measure fluoride: parts per million (ppm), mg/L, mg/g. This article converts all measurements to mg for simplification.
Setting the Stage
Fluoride is essential in 1) preventing dental cavities 2) reducing tooth destruction and 3) enhancing tooth remineralization. The two most ubiquitous sources of fluoride are found in water and toothpaste. Topical fluorides, like toothpaste, are not typically swallowed but the ingestion of any fluoride is the concern. The CNN article discusses that chronically ingesting 1.5mg/L+ of fluoride lowers IQ in children if ABSORBED in the body. Adult IQ is unaffected by consuming excessive fluoride though some spouses may disagree; however, kids are affected and are thus the main concern.
The Water Question
Fluoride in community drinking water is heavily regulated or else there could be dangerous levels of naturally occurring fluoride well above the IQ-deficiency threshold. 75% of municipalities in the USA have fluoridated water and 99% of those communities aim for fluoride levels at 0.7 mg/L, half the 1.5mg/L IQ-purging threshold. This controlled fluoride amount is equivalent to the quantity of 1 cent to $14,000. There are other additives in city water that should be a larger concern than fluoride like radon, PFA’s, and arsenic. Children absorb 80% of the fluoride consumed so in actuality children would need to consume 1.8mg/L to reach that daily fluoride threshold.
What About Toothpaste?
Toothpaste usually has 0.25mg fluoride per pea-sized amount. Though toothpaste is to be spit out after use, some children up to 8-years old may potentially swallow up to 0.25mg of fluoride each time they brush. Assuming a child should drink 1.2L of water daily and happens to swallow all the brushed toothpaste twice a day, that would total 1.3mg. This quantity is still half the daily recommended safe amount of 2.2mg fluoride per day for children and less than the IQ threshold of 1.5mg/L. If your community does not fluoridate drinking water then the risk of consuming 1.5mg/L is even more difficult to reach for kids since negative effects require daily and chronic overconsumption of fluoride.
What Sources Contain Fluoride?
The argument of avoiding fluoridated water is shortsighted when so many other products have the same or more natural fluoride concentration:
If you’re going to die on a mountain for a cause, don’t make it about fluoridated water unless you avoid everything else greater than water on this chart.
Studies Showing the Following Lower IQ:
Diets in high fat, high sugars, and processed foods
Kids who gets spanked have a 5-point drop in IQ
Second-hand smoke in children
Marijuana use
Prolonged electronic use in children has a 7-point drop
Excess Fluoride has a 2-5-point drop in IQ (less than electronics)
Final Thoughts
Fluoride in drinking water is heavily regulated by the EPA to provide safe limits. Maintaining the fluoride in city water to 0.7 mg/L aids in cavity prevention on a grand scale without risk of overconsumption. Water is not the worst fluoride offender since many other products have just as much or more fluoride in them. Anything in excess can be bad. The dental community is aware that IQ can drop with excess but the likelihood of chronically consuming too much fluoride living in the USA is extremely difficult. If anything, kids on electronics all day will do far more damage to IQ than potentially reaching excessive fluoride levels consistently.
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