Originally published by Mercola.com and republished on his Private Substack.
Arsenic
The greatest threat arsenic poses is when it’s found in drinking water, food preparation and irrigating food crops. Long-term exposure can lead to several forms of cancer,31 and other research suggests there’s an association with neurological effects, diabetes and high blood pressure.32
The health impact of low exposure happens over a long period and has been shown to reduce children’s IQ33 and increase the risk of skin discoloration and lesions.34 The acceptable level for arsenic in drinking water was originally set in 1942 at 50 parts per billion (ppb).35
This was reduced to 10 parts per billion in 2001, which was an amount the EPA felt would help water system operators balance the cost of filtering water against health challenges resulting from exposure.36 Yet this is still more than triple the 3-ppb level at which experts have long insisted it should be limited and which the EPA first considered. A 2017 NRDC study37 noted that the EPA had set a maximum contaminant level for arsenic at zero since no level is safe.
However, it set the enforceable level at 10 ppb, which continues to present a “substantial cancer risk.” Lead is another heavy metal contaminant that the EPA recognizes has no safe exposure limit, yet they do not require utility services to lower lead levels until 10% of the homes sampled in the area exceed 15 ppb.38
In the same NRDC report,39 the researchers found 5,367 water systems were allowing high levels of lead and copper into the water system affecting over 18 million consumers.
There is an overwhelming cost to the community and individuals from exposure to lead, including kidney and brain damage, anemia, weakness, neurological damage to a developing baby, lower IQ in children, and infertility in men and women.40 Yet, the EPA has not made any significant changes to the maximum acceptable exposure levels.
Fluoride Added to Tap Water Lowers IQ
In addition to pollutants that make it into the water supply from contamination to groundwater, regulatory agencies add fluoride to the drinking water supply. According to a commentary in the journal Nature,41 it is nearly impossible to get both sides of the fluoride issue to meet in the middle.
Supporters say it prevents cavities and strengthens teeth, but opponents say the risks present to children’s overall health far outweigh any dental benefits.42 To date fluoride is hailed by the CDC as “one of the 10 greatest public health achievements of the 20th century,”43 with roughly 73% of the U.S. population drinking from a fluoridated public water supply in 2018.44
A landmark study45 published in 2021 confirmed that very low levels of fluoride exposure during pregnancy impacted brain development in a child and at a level that may be causing more damage than lead, mercury or arsenic.
What you hear most often from proponents of fluoride at council meetings and from policymakers, is that government agencies can vouch for fluoridation “safety and effectiveness,” and regulate the practice responsibly. The thinking therefore, is because they say that, it must be true.
However, instead of verifying the claims, policymakers have put their unquestioning trust in government agencies and media outlets have suspended their professionalism by not only blindly trusting the agencies, but also discrediting those who oppose fluoridation.46 However, under oath, representatives have proved that this mantra of “safe and effective” is only a baseless claim used to promote a failed policy.
Casey Hannan, director of the CDC’s oral health division,47 testified that the CDC has no data establishing the safety of fluoride’s effect on the brain,48 despite decades of touting the safety for all citizens, including children. Hannan also admits there is no prenatal or early life benefit.49
We can’t count on the mainstream media or the public health authorities to tell the public or decision-makers about what is happening. It’s up to individuals to pass this information to family and friends and encourage them to pass it along as well.
Please help us get to the finish line in a world without fluoridation. If you’re concerned about the health effects of fluoride, please support the Fluoride Action Network50 with your tax-deductible donation today.
Originally published by Mercola.com.
Author: Dr Joseph Mercola
Dr. Joseph Mercola is the founder of Mercola.com. An osteopathic physician, best-selling author and recipient of multiple awards in the field of natural health, his primary vision is to change the modern health paradigm by providing people with a valuable resource to help them take control of their health.
