U.S. court: Fluoride in water risky, must be addressed

A U.S. judge in California issued a landmark decision on September 24 determining that adding fluoride to public drinking water to help prevent tooth decay is risky to individuals, including children who may face lowered IQs, and therefore requires government intervention.

Also, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Judge Edward Chen ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to take regulatory action to address these risks. Simply, the EPA must determine the potential harm of fluoride in drinking water and determine how to respond under its amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), according to the court opinion.

In the opinion, Chen stated that the plaintiff, the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Food & Water Watch, had proven that water fluoridation at the level of 0.7 mg/L, which is the prescribed optimal level of fluoridation in the U.S., presents an "unreasonable" risk of injury to health, including that to a potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulation. The nonprofit has stated that the agency's optimal level has been too high and harmful.

However, "it should be noted that this finding does not conclude with certainty that fluoridated water is injurious to public health; rather, as required by the Amended TSCA, the Court finds there is an unreasonable risk of such injury, a risk sufficient to require the EPA to engage with a regulatory response," Chen wrote in his opinion.

Though the court did not outline the measures that the EPA must take to address this issue, Chen wrote, "One thing the EPA cannot do, however, in the face of this Court's finding, is to ignore that risk."

Food & Water Watch Executive Director Wenonah Hunter said in a statement dated September 25 that the ruling represented "an important acknowledgment of a large and growing body of science indicating serious human health risks associated with fluoridated drinking water. This court looked at the science and acted accordingly. Now the EPA must respond by implementing new regulations that adequately protect all Americans -- especially our most vulnerable infants and children -- from this known health threat."

An EPA representative could not immediately be reached for comment.

Since about 1945, health professionals, including the ADA, have encouraged community water fluoridation to protect the dental health of communities. Currently, about 75% percent of the population's public water systems are fluoridated.

In recent years, several studies have sowed doubt about the benefits of fluoride, especially at its current prescribed levels. Recent studies have suggested a relationship between kidney function in adolescents and fluoride levels in community drinking water as well as a potential link between maternal fluoride exposure and lower IQ and nonverbal deficits in kids.

Nevertheless, Chen did not rule whether the EPA will have to pay Food & Water Watch's attorney fees and related expenses. This will be determined later.