Top Florida health official advises against fluoride in drinking water

Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo on Friday announced a recommendation against community water fluoridation.

The recommendation comes as a Florida city voted last week to remove fluoride from its drinking water, with one city commissioner citing Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s past comments on the matter as one of the reasons. 

Florida's top health official cited "the neuropsychiatric risk associated with fluoride exposure, particularly in pregnant women and children" as the primary reason for the recommendation.

“It is clear more research is necessary to address safety and efficacy concerns regarding community water fluoridation,” said State Surgeon General Dr. Joseph A. Ladapo. “The previously considered benefit of community water fluoridation does not outweigh the current known risks, especially for special populations like pregnant women and children.” 

The Environmental Protection Agency sets legal limits for water fluoridation as high amounts of the chemical can cause health issues.

In 2017, a judge, considering a legal challenge claiming fluoride causes neurological impacts, concluded there was "unreasonable risk" related to its presence in water, but that this finding “does not conclude with certainty that fluoridated water is injurious to public health."

Kennedy, who President-elect Trump recently tapped to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), previously said in a post on social media that “the Trump White House will advise all U.S. water systems to remove fluoride from public water.”  

Water fluoridation is a local government decision, and it’s unclear if Kennedy could compel municipalities to do away with the cavity-fighting chemical. 

Kennedy also wrote that fluoride was “associated” with numerous medical issues, though many of these claims are linked to exposure to fluoride doses far higher than what most people would experience drinking fluoridated water and brushing their teeth.  

Fluoride, a naturally occurring substance, has been used in U.S. drinking water since 1945 and is largely considered one of the most important public health measures of the 20th century.