Using fluoride bans to push other nonsense

Today on Facebook The Industry of Stupid posted what I consider to be a pretty ridicules screen shot:

(Let it noted that TIOS doesn't endorse this, they just posted it to show off some peoples' stupidity)

The first sentence says there has been some controversy over adding synthetic fluoride to water supplies, and sadly this is true. What they are claiming is that there has not been enough controversy. Many others would say differently and say that it's been to much controversy, and that there shouldn't be any controversy at all because the amount of fluoride added to most water systems is in such low doses that you would have to drink over three times as much water as the recommend daily intake inorder to ingest enough fluoride for it to be toxic to you.

Odds are you would probably die of water poisoning before you would die of fluoride poisoning if just from drinking water.

The sentence says that water fluoridation is a serious issue. This is somewhat true, but only in the financial sense and whether or not water fluoridation is worth the cost. All other concerns are are the result of not understanding the science behind water fluoridation, as well as fear induced paranoia brought on by conspiracy theories and junk science regrading water fluoridation.

The last sentence states that fluoride, along with GMOs and vaccines rank among the "greatest crimes against humanity".

Besides the fact that these two things have nothing to do with water fluoridation, this isn't simply not true, it's actually quite the opposite.

Both GMOs and vaccines are not only safe, they have also been two of the most beneficial things for humanity by decreasing starvation and decreasing one's chances of dieing from an infectious disease.

Not only is this person trying to push the made up controversies surrounding water fluoridation, they are also trying to couple this with the made up controversies surrounding GMOs and vaccines to make it sound like they are all the same in a sense.

The only thing these things have in common is the fact that people believe they are bad for you and that they are part of some conspiracy, as well as the fact they all have been beneficial to our overall health.

Last, the picture in the screen shot itself claims that 98% of all European counties ban water fluoridation. This is not accurate. Most places in Europe do not ban water fluoridation, they just choose not too.

Embarrassing Conspiracy Theories: Water Fluoridation

Ever since the 1970's the United States, along with several other countries, has been putting fluoride in the public water supplies in an effort to reduce tooth decay, and ever since there has been controversy. While some of the controversy concerns some legitimate reasons, such as cost, and effectiveness, and some safety concerns. Others concerns tend to be just outright conspiracy theories.

The two main conspiracy theories concerning water fluoridation is that the fluoride in the water is causing peoples' intelligence to lower, and that it's causing people to become infertile. The reason why conspiracy theorists believe this is because fluoride is a poison, and that any amount of fluoride, no matter how small the amount, is dangerous to humans.

First, if water fluoridation did cause infertility, then why hasn't the birth rate and population gone down? Also, the fact is, is that poisons don't infertility. Genetics, disease, radiation, and injuries to reproductive organs causes infertility.

Second, while our intelligence "might" be lowering (and this is an issue of debate) it's more likely the result of the lowering of educational standards, and possibly some peoples' distrust in science.

It is true, fluoride can kill a person, but only if it's consumed in a large enough amounts. The amount varies from person to person, but usually it's somewhere between 5 to 10 grams.

It would be impossible to consume even a fraction of fluoride through drinking water from public water supplies to cause a person any harm. This is due to the fact that the water has diluted the fluoride so much that it renders it to the point where it is harmless.

It should also be noted that fluoride, even in larger, but non-lethal amounts, does not cause infertility, or lowering of intelligence. It can cause leg pain and incomplete stress fractures, and also stomach irritation and sometimes even ulcers. The amount of water you would need to drink at one time in order to cause the leg and stomach problems would be so much that it's physically impossible to do. You would either be physically unable to continue to drink, or you would dry drown.