Removing Fluoride in Drinking Water: Why It Could Harm Millions of Kids

We’ve come a long way in preventing pain we can’t remember.

Ask anyone who grew up in the 1940s or ’50s what childhood dental care was like before fluoride was added to drinking water. You’ll hear stories of kids missing school due to toothaches, families unable to afford fillings, and entire generations that grew up thinking it was normal to lose teeth by middle age.

Then, a quiet miracle happened. In city after city, public health officials added a trace amount of fluoride in drinking water—backed by decades of research showing it was safe and dramatically effective. Rates of childhood cavities dropped. Millions of kids kept their teeth, their sleep, and their confidence.

It worked. Fluoride works by strengthening tooth enamel and helping prevent the formation of cavities.¹

And now, we’re about to throw it away.

A Quiet Reversal with Loud Consequences

In several cities and states across the U.S., new legislation is gaining traction to ban or remove fluoride from public water systems. The arguments behind these proposals raise concerns about fluoride safety that have been extensively studied and addressed by major health organizations over decades.

It’s natural for parents to have questions about what goes in their children’s drinking water—that’s exactly why these organizations have studied fluoride so thoroughly.

And they’ve come to the same conclusion: fluoride is one of the greatest public health achievements of the 20th century. The CDC, the World Health Organization, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and nearly every major dental and medical body worldwide agree. (Including the American Dental Association, American Medical Association, World Dental Federation, Royal College of Physicians, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the Canadian Dental Association, the UK Health Security Agency. No major medical or dental associations oppose community water fluoridation.)

These organizations continuously monitor safety data and have consistently found community water fluoridation to be safe and effective at recommended levels.

Today, more than 70% of Americans receive fluoridated water through their public supply—a quiet, preventive tool that works in the background to protect teeth and reduce inequality in access to dental care.

Still, new laws are moving forward. And while the science hasn’t changed, public concern has grown.

The worst part? Most of these laws haven’t even gone into effect yet. But they will soon—and when they do, it won’t be immediate. Not at first.

What Will Happen Next?

At first, nothing. The water will still taste the same. The headlines will move on.

But months down the road, dentists in those communities will start to notice. More cavities in children. More cases of advanced decay in kids as young as three or four.² More families struggling to pay for fillings, extractions, even surgery under general anesthesia.

And just like that, we’ll have undone 50 years of progress.³

We’ll go from protecting children passively and painlessly—by simply keeping fluoride in drinking water—to a reactive system where only the kids with the means to visit a dentist regularly stand a chance.

Those most at risk?
The very children fluoride helps the most: kids in low-income households, rural communities, and areas without regular dental access.

The Science Is Clear, But the Stakes Are Real

This isn’t about government overreach. It’s about a science-based policy that quietly shielded millions of people from needless pain.

This means fluoride at the right levels, with proper monitoring, in communities that need it most.

If we remove it, we’re not “playing it safe.” We’re gambling—with children’s teeth as the chips.

Because the cost of pulling fluoride out of our water won’t be felt in headlines or courtrooms.
It will be felt in aching mouths, sleepless nights, and empty classroom seats.
In school nurses handing out Tylenol instead of Band-Aids.
In parents postponing rent to pay for dental bills.

We’ve seen this before.
Let’s not make ourselves live through it again.

We were given this protection by earlier generations who fought to improve children’s health. Now it’s our turn to return the favor.

We still have time.
Speak up. Push back.
Demand science-based policy that preserves the benefits of fluoride in drinking water–before those benefits are gone.

Because once the damage starts, it will be our children who pay for it—one tooth at a time.

Last Updated on July 15, 2025