The Effectiveness of Home Water Purification Systems on the Amount of Fluoride in Drinking Water

If you live in a developed country such as the United States, there is a good chance that you may be receiving too much fluoride in your drinking water. Until a few years ago, almost all the states in the United States add and treat their public water with fluoride. This is done because fluoride helps prevent tooth decay. However, recent research has revealed that taking too much fluoride can be working against your health after all.

Fluoride is a mineral that is found naturally in almost every water sources including seawater and freshwater. You can also find it in a range of food items such as rice, fish, and tea. Most regions of the United States and some other countries across the world make use of fluoride in treating their water supplies. This is because fluoride promotes remineralization of teeth, strengthens the enamel of the teeth, and helps to fight off bacteria that cause tooth decay. Nevertheless, recent research has shown that fluoride may be causing more harm than good in the long run. 

The Problem With Fluoride in Drinking Water

Recent researchers have revealed that fluoride may not be as good as we once thought. In fact, some studies suggested that even in low dosages, regular consumption of fluoride can lead to a thyroid problem. Additionally, when children under nine years of age are exposed to levels of fluoride greater than about 2 mg/L, they may develop a condition called "mottling" or "discoloration of the permanent teeth".

Despite all these problems listed above, the strongest argument against fluoride is that it is a neurotoxin. This means it damages brain function. However, fluoride only becomes neurotoxin when it is consumed at a very high dosage. Unfortunately, since fluoride can be found both in drinking water and some food items, it means it is very easy to exceed the daily recommended fluoride intake. 

Removing Fluoride Out Of Your Drinking Water

Unfortunately, not everyone can afford to buy bottled water every day. If you are getting your water from the public water source, there is a need for you to treat such water before drinking it. However, there is a problem. Most water filtration systems and devices available in the market today are not designed to remove fluoride. This means, your current water filter may have no use against fluoride.

You only require a very small amount of fluoride in your water to maintain healthy teeth. Anything more than this could affect your health. Consequently, you need a right filter that can not only remove fluoride from your water but be able to determine the right amount of fluoride to remove. 

Some effective process to remove fluoride from drinking water includes:

• Reverse osmosis
• Strong base anion exchange
• Activated alumina adsorption media
• Distillation method

The only problem is that most of these techniques mentioned above are designed for industrial use, rare to find, or very expensive to buy them. Fortunately, you don't have to give up. A great alternative to these filtration systems is the well-known Berkey water filter system which is very effective in fluoride removal and it is significantly affordable compared to these systems mentioned above.