this post was submitted on 30 May 2025
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Once hailed as a triumph of public health, water fluoridation is now under intense attack in the US.

Despite decades of data proving its efficacy at protecting teeth from decay—particularly children's teeth—two states have now banned the use of fluoride in public water, and communities around the country have followed suit or are considering doing the same. The current US health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is known for his anti-vaccine advocacy and for peddling conspiracy theories, has pledged to remove fluoride from US water.

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[–] Kyrgizion@lemmy.world 56 points 6 days ago (2 children)

9/10 compromised dentists approve. The other one was taken out back and shot.

[–] magic_lobster_party@fedia.io 31 points 6 days ago (3 children)

RFK is the type of person who exclusively takes advice from the 10th dentist.

[–] thefartographer@lemm.ee 17 points 6 days ago

9/10 dentists agree that toothpaste is helpful. The 10th dentist is complaining to RFKJ that the toothpaste is too spicy for his butthole when he masturbates using his toothbrush.

[–] ReallyActuallyFrankenstein@lemmynsfw.com 5 points 6 days ago (1 children)

10th Dentist does their own research and isn't weighed down by "certifications" and "licenses," so you know they can think for themselves!

[–] ExtantHuman@lemm.ee 3 points 6 days ago (1 children)

They never actually ask any dentists. They just say that because it sounds plausible. It's a marketing gimmick that can't really be proven wrong.

Just like slapping "Arsenic free" on your product when neither yours nor any of your competitors' products would conceivably contain it.

[–] natebluehooves@pawb.social 1 points 5 days ago

The fine print often points to the cherry picked sponsored study. You don’t have to make up evil, it already exists.

[–] danc4498@lemmy.world 1 points 6 days ago

Gather 100 doctors and you can get a unanimous vote. 10/10

[–] joelfromaus@aussie.zone 5 points 6 days ago

The other one was taken out back and shot.

The coroner report will be suicide by head trauma. Poor dentist was so sad he shot himself in the back the head, twice!

[–] BigMacHole@lemm.ee 44 points 6 days ago

I DIDNT vote for Republicans for their FISCAL Responsibility or CARING for Kids! I VOTED for them so I can BULLY my Child's Classmates! Jesus LOVES me!

[–] Bieren@lemmy.world 33 points 6 days ago

His argument for fluoride being so harmful should be him coming out eating a tube of toothpaste and admitting to being a fucking moron.

[–] flandish@lemmy.world 33 points 6 days ago (2 children)

don’t forget “cost” means “profit for insurance and providers and drug corps.”

[–] MyTurtleSwimsUpsideDown@fedia.io 11 points 6 days ago (1 children)

“Inject 9.8 billion into the economy”

[–] flandish@lemmy.world 10 points 6 days ago

“extract” 9.8 billion from the “root” of all wealth, the working class. a very “toothy” proposition.

[–] driving_crooner@lemmy.eco.br 2 points 6 days ago

Not having to provide a service is most profitable that having to do it. Insurance companies are going to lose money with this.

[–] selkiesidhe@lemm.ee 28 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Which puts strain on parents. Which lessens the chance they'll riot and speak out.

It's all about controlling the population. 70% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. They cannot risk their jobs by taking time off/ risking getting fired/ thrown in jail/ losing any pay/ losing benefits.

It's obvious and it is fucking disgusting. When are we going to start eating the rich? Wondering on behalf of 70% of my fellow citizens...

[–] WindyRebel@lemmy.world 8 points 6 days ago

You’re welcome to wrangle the cats and start the revolution!

[–] Catoblepas@lemmy.blahaj.zone 28 points 6 days ago (2 children)

I grew up drinking unfluoridated water (my family still has no access to municipal water) and have had dental problems all my life. Probably not the only reason, but I’m sure it didn’t help. These kids are in for literal and financial pain.

[–] henfredemars@infosec.pub 11 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

Hurting kids is a great conservative pastime despite how much time they spend thinking of the children.

Education, healthcare, social safety nets, school lunches...It's pretty much conservatives punching children while saying "stop punching yourself," the whole way down.

[–] Aganim@lemmy.world 9 points 6 days ago (3 children)

In the Netherlands we stopped adding fluoride to the drinking water decades ago, amongst others because of a dramatic increase in reported migraines and bowel issues during the period we did add it. Stopping fluoridation didn't cause any dental Armageddon, so it is definitely possible to get rid of it without adverse effects.

However, and here lies the issue I suspect, we actually have decent dental care, brushing your teeth is ingrained from early on and almost every toothpaste contains fluoride.

[–] Damage@feddit.it 4 points 6 days ago (1 children)

I don't think it's common at all in Europe, yet people still have teeth.

[–] iglou@programming.dev 1 points 5 days ago

Yep, although not as white but that's because we're not massive fans of all these whitening stuff.

[–] jagged_circle@feddit.nl 2 points 6 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Your population is probably just smart enough to brush their teeth

[–] DMCMNFIBFFF@lemmy.world 1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

wp:Water fluoridation by country#Europe

Out of a population of about three-quarters of a billion, under 14 million people (approximately 2%) in Europe receive artificially-fluoridated water. Those people are in the UK (5,797,000), Republic of Ireland (4,780,000), Spain (4,250,000), and Serbia (300,000).[27]

...

Many European countries have rejected water fluoridation, including: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland,[68] Scotland,[69] Iceland, and Italy.[70] A 2003 survey of over 500 Europeans from 16 countries concluded that "the vast majority of people opposed water fluoridation".[71]

[–] xc2215x@lemmy.world 25 points 6 days ago (1 children)

RFK Jr has no idea what he is doing.

[–] renamon_silver@lemmy.wtf 12 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Yet he is allowed to continue

[–] DMCMNFIBFFF@lemmy.world 4 points 5 days ago

The important thing is that he gets rewarded for supporting Trump: issues such as the health of Americans are at best secondary to this.

[–] Ghostalmedia@lemmy.world 11 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Fluoride seems to be getting banned in a lot of places that drink more Prime than water.

[–] Red0ctober@lemmy.world 9 points 6 days ago (3 children)

I don't believe anyone actually drinks Prime. The displays I've seen never look like they've been touched.

[–] Nora@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 6 days ago

I tried a few flavors when they first came out and the only thought I had was "wow this tastes like pure sugar." So I can definitely see why kids would like them. I've seen a few kids begging their parents for them in stores too, which is crazy to me, because it's just a shitty energy drink/electrolyte drink.

I see the neighbor kids drinking it from time to time when walking my dogs

[–] Ghostalmedia@lemmy.world 1 points 6 days ago

Maybe the fad has passed. It was definitely a thing around here.

[–] bane_killgrind@slrpnk.net 10 points 6 days ago

So the wealthy are increasingly scrambling for ways to differentiate themselves from the plebs.

The Internet shot education disparities in the foot, along with equal access measures. Looks and fashion are meaningless, because the first point means that personally made, bespoke items can be very high quality. Health can be maintained very cheaply, with the right knowledge.

So they are frustrating access to education and preventative health measures like vaccines and fluoride.

[–] jagged_circle@feddit.nl 7 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Parents, do your job in making your kids brush with normal toothpaste

[–] WhatAmLemmy@lemmy.world 1 points 5 days ago

Problem solved, everyone! After all, abstinence solved teen pregnancy.

[–] quicklime@lemm.ee 7 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

Fluoridated water and occasional low-dose supplement tablets are the clear reason why I didn't have a single major cavity until I was nearly 50, in spite of a lifetime of very haphazard, on-again off-again brushing habits. (yes, I've since standardized my brushing!). My parents and other relatives aren't especially genetically resistant to tooth decay or anything, so I'm pretty sure it was the fluoride that gave me such a cavity-free first five decades. That certainly saved me money, but it saved the public health system even more. Meanwhile I still did my part to keep dentists in business with yearly cleaning and checkups.

[–] TheFogan@programming.dev 5 points 6 days ago

Can we suggest to him T-Dazzle?

[–] theacharnian@lemmy.ca 1 points 5 days ago

Invest in companies making filling materials 🤡

[–] SnarkoPolo@lemm.ee 1 points 6 days ago

That's the plan. Do you not know?

[–] themaninblack@lemmy.world 1 points 5 days ago

It’s so American to put a price in this headline

[–] Plesiohedron@lemmy.cafe -1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

So get your fluoride some other way, like in the toothpaste. Everybody wins.

[–] peekingduck@lemm.ee -2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Shit, who still drinks water from the faucet? I live in Silicon Valley and that shit is contaminated as fuck. I can’t remember the last time I got my fluoride this way. Just brush your damn teeth dirtbags.

[–] Bakkoda@sh.itjust.works 3 points 5 days ago

My tap water is incredible. I'm probably a minority but it's really really fuckin good.