Fluoride and Prejudice: Getting To The Root of This Controversial Mineral

Unbiased Science

@unbiasedscipod

Education, Science, Health & Fitness

4.4 • 644 Ratings

🗓️ 11 December 2024

⏱️ 38 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode, Dr. Jessica Steier and Dr. Sarah Scheinman explore the complex and controversial topic of fluoride in public health. The scientists examine the recent National Toxicology Program report linking fluoride to potential cognitive impacts, discussing its historical significance and the ongoing debates about its use in water supplies. They delve into the nuanced considerations of fluoride's benefits and risks, addressing concerns about dental health, potential cognitive effects, and health equity. The conversation provides a balanced perspective on fluoride, highlighting the importance of scientific evidence in understanding its role in public health and dental care. All our sources from this episode are available at: https://www.unbiasedscipod.com/episodes/ (00:00) Introduction (03:29) Understanding Fluoride: Definition and Function (06:19) Historical Context of Fluoride and Dental Health (09:21) Recent Controversies: NTP Report and IQ Concerns (12:13) Fluoride: Benefits vs. Risks (15:22) Health Equity and Access to Dental Care (18:30) Fluorosis: Understanding the Condition (21:06) IQ: What It Is and Its Measurement Challenges (24:20) The Connection Between Dental Health and Cognitive Function (27:20) Consequences of Removing Fluoride from Water (30:21) Hydroxyapatite as an Alternative to Fluoride (33:20) Final Thoughts: Conclusion on Fluoride Interested in advertising with us? Please reach out to advertising@airwavemedia.com, with “Unbiased Science” in the subject line. PLEASE NOTE: The discussion and information provided in this podcast are for general educational, scientific, and informational purposes only and are not intended as, and should not be treated as, medical or other professional advice for any particular individual or individuals. Every person and medical issue is different, and diagnosis and treatment requires consideration of specific facts often unique to the individual. As such, the information contained in this podcast should not be used as a substitute for consultation with and/or treatment by a doctor or other medical professional. If you are experiencing any medical issue or have any medical concern, you should consult with a doctor or other medical professional. Further, due to the inherent limitations of a podcast such as this as well as ongoing scientific developments, we do not guarantee the completeness or accuracy of the information or analysis provided in this podcast, although, of course we always endeavor to provide comprehensive information and analysis. In no event may Unbiased Science or any of the participants in this podcast be held liable to the listener or anyone else for any decision allegedly made or action allegedly taken or not taken allegedly in reliance on the discussion or information in this podcast or for any damages allegedly resulting from such reliance. The information provided herein do not represent the views of our employers.

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to an Airwave Media podcast.
0:27.3	Welcome to Unbiased Science, where we bring scientific method to the madness.
0:31.3	We're your hosts, Dr. Jess Steyer and Dr. Sarah Shidenman. And today, we're talking about something that is all over the news.
0:36.2	It's a very hot topic, the topic of fluoride.
0:41.1	So I'm trying to think, honestly, well, actually, you know what, let's set the stage for folks.
0:46.0	So Sarah and I were chatting before we hit record on this episode. And we could talk about this
0:52.3	for several hours for dates. I mean, there's so many
0:56.2	different deep dives we could do on all the different aspects of this. But our goal with this
1:01.4	episode is to really focus on some high-level key takeaways. You know, when you're sitting
1:07.5	around the holiday table, if this topic comes up, you'll have some talking points, you'll have some context. But we have done a ton of written content and also
1:16.2	infographic content on this topic. We have a lot more planned. So for that, definitely check out
1:22.0	our page and we'll link to these things in the show notes. But Sarah, maybe to kick things off with the
1:28.9	definition, which you love, what is fluoride? Let's start there. What are we talking about?
1:34.7	All right. So fluoride has been coming up a lot in the news and in it and in the media. And it's been,
1:41.3	it's been spoken about in the context of water fluoridation. So what does this mean?
1:46.4	And what, what even is fluoride? Like, let's start with that maybe. So fluoride is an ion of the,
1:53.0	is a negatively charged ion of the element fluorine. So think periodic table of elements back to
2:00.3	chemistry class. Fluorine is just one of the
2:02.6	elements on the periodic table. And an ion is just when the amounts of electrons and protons are
2:11.2	different than what are usually found. So a negatively charged ion of fluorine is called fluoride, but it's still fluorine.
2:19.9	Okay, so fluorine usually binds to another atom when it's in that negatively charged ionic state,
2:27.1	and it's usually going to be a salt like sodium.
	...

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