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The truth about fluoride: you'll never drink unfiltered tap water again!
Summary
- Introduction
- Focus on the fluoride controversy: why is it a matter of concern
- History of Fluorine
- The health risks of Fluorine
- The situation in Belgium and elsewhere
- The ÖKO EUROPE filtration system: Our shield against Fluorine
- Conclusion
Introduction
Water is essential to life. But do you really know what you're drinking? An often overlooked component of our water is fluorine. Once seen as the white knight of dental health, recent discoveries highlight the risks associated with excessive consumption.
Focus on the fluoride controversy: why is it a matter of concern?
Fluoride has long been promoted by dentists for its anti-caries properties. This beneficial effect is even recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO). However, recent studies show a different, less glowing side to fluoride.
In 2010, the WHO ranked fluoride among the ten major chemicals posing a public health problem, alongside asbestos or arsenic.
History of Fluorine
Fluorine has gradually crept into our everyday products, particularly toothpastes. It was a laboratory working for the American company Alcoa that first highlighted the benefits of fluoride on the dentition. Since then, the substance has been widely adopted, so much so that it was even prescribed for children. This practice has been banned in France since 2008.
The health risks of Fluorine
When fluoride attacks: from dental fluorosis to caries.
Excess fluoride can cause illness. Dental fluorosis, for example, is a condition that manifests itself as whitish or brown stains on the teeth, for which there is no treatment. What's more, prolonged over-consumption of fluoride, as a French study has shown, can make bones brittle and fragile.
Impacts on bone strength.
At doses higher than 10 mg per day for around ten years, there's a risk of bone fluorosis. Bones become more fragile, increasing the risk of fractures.
Source : Le fluor, un ami qui ne vous veut pas que du bien, article France infoDental fluorosis affects around 2% of children in France. Once all the permanent teeth have come out, this risk no longer exists. But if doses are much higher, at 10 mg fluoride a day for ten years for example, there's a risk of bone fluorosis, which makes bones brittle. This can happen when tap water is highly fluoridated.
Source : "Fluoride, a friend who wants to harm you": the dangers of your toothpaste, TF1 info articleA French study reveals, for example, that 45% of 4/12 year-olds have excessive fluoride intakes. Tea bags, tap water.All contain fluorine.
Quantity of fluorine in water and food
According to the WHO, the fluoride limit is 0.05 mg per day and per kilo of body weight, all intakes combined, without exceeding 1 mg/d. For a 5-year-old child, this is equivalent to 1 mg/day.
The fluoride content of tap water is limited to 1.5 mg per liter.
Provenance | Quantity of fluorine |
---|---|
Tap water | 1.5 mg per liter |
Tea cup | Up to 1 mg |
Quézac | 2.2 mg per liter |
Badoit | 1.2 mg per litre |
Saint-Yorre | 1 mg per litre |
Vichy Célestins | 0.5 mg per liter |
San Pellegrino | 0.5 mg per liter |
Wattwiller | <0.5 mg per liter |
Hépar | 0.4 mg per litre |
Contrex | 0.36 mg per liter |
Perrier | <0.2 mg per liter |
Vittel | 0.16 mg per litre |
Evian | 0.12 mg per litre |
Canned crab | 0.21 mg per 100 g |
Shrimp, canned | 0.2 mg per 100 g |
Fresh mackerel | 0.15 mg per 100 g |
Fresh cod | 0.03 mg per 100 g |
Fresh Atlantic salmon | 0.03 mg per 100 g |
Fresh trout | 0.03 mg per 100 g |
Drained canned tuna in oil | 0.03 mg per 100 g |
The situation in Belgium and elsewhere
Limal in the spotlight
As you probably know, ÖKO EUROPE has approached the EUROFINS - Euraceta laboratory in order to carry out independent analyses on French and Belgian soils of tap water and the effectiveness of the ÖKO EUROPE filtration system on all contaminants, pesticides, metals, drugs, ...
The list goes on and on.
On August 11, 2023, we commissioned the EUROFINS Euraceta laboratory to study the effectiveness of the filter on fluoride based on Limal tap water and adding voluntarily nearly 2 mg of Fluorine to the solution.
Before filtration, the fluoride concentration in the water was therefore 1.96 mg / liter.
Maximum fluoride threshold in tap water in Europe
EU Directive no. 2020/2184 of 16/12/20 on the quality of water intended for human consumption sets the maximum permitted fluoride threshold in water at 1.5 mg / liter on European soil.
Focus on France
In France, tap water can sometimes exceed the 1.5 mg / liter threshold set by the European directive. This was the case at Coulommiers in Seine-et-Marne in 2020, with a reading of 1.67 mg/l : https://www.leparisien.fr/seine-et-marne-77/coulommiers-alerte-au-fluor-dans-l-eau-du-robinet-08-01-2020-8231766.php.
The ÖKO EUROPE Filtration System: Our shield against Fluorine
Zoom on ÖKO EUROPE: how it works
Faced with these dangers, it's reassuring to know that solutions exist. The ÖKO EUROPE filtration system offers an effective response by removing fluoride and other harmful contaminants from water.
As a reminder, our filtration system is patented & from NASA. It works with a unique electro-adsorption technology: a positive electrical charge is created when water passes through the filter, which attracts the negative charge present on most submicron contaminants (< 1 micron such as viruses and bacteria among others).
Stunning results: the study that speaks for itself
As mentioned above, ÖKO EUROPE conducted an analysis to assess the effectiveness of its filtration system on fluoride by the EUROFINS - Euraceta laboratory, on 11/08/23.
The analysis report provided by the laboratory is here or on our Technology and Analysis page.
The study shows that the ÖKO EUROPE filtration system is extremely effective in guaranteeing water without excess fluoride.
Below are the results:
- Before filtration: Fluoride content of 1.96 mg/l (voluntary addition to obtain water unfit for use);
- After filtration: < 0.1 mg/l
![Efficacité du système de filtration ÖKO EUROPE sur le fluor](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0242/6955/3719/files/Efficacite_du_systeme_de_filtration_OKO_EUROPE_sur_le_fluor_600x600.jpg?v=1692286290)
Conclusion
Water is essential to our survival. It makes up 60% of our body and it is vital to take care of its quality. Today, the debate on fluoride in water is far from over, and collective solutions will probably take years to arrive. In the meantime, we can only recommend the use of a filtration system like our ultra-filtering water bottles for you and your loved ones.
Author's note: The aim here is not to alarm or revolt, but simply to inform so that everyone is aware of the risks, especially for children under 12. I myself discovered while preparing this article that I've had dental fluorosis since I was a child, like 2% of children in France. For me, it's a white spot, clearly visible when I smile, in the center (I'm not to be pitied; for others, it's a brown spot).). A doctor told my mother it was a reaction to an antibiotic, but since I was drinking tap water, I don't think so. I think I now have the real explanation.