Everywhere you look, you’ll be told you NEED fluoride in your toothpaste. But the reality is fluoride-free toothpaste is just as good, if not better than fluoride toothpaste.
Now I understand many of you think fluoride is some magical cure for cavities (or maybe you’re scared to completely stop using it).
But millions of people have dropped fluoride from their dental care routine, started using fluoride-free toothpaste and have perfectly healthy teeth.
10 Reasons To Use Fluoride-Free Toothpaste
#1. Fluoride is Poison
I know it’s hard to believe.
But the proof is on the toothpaste label.
For example, in the picture below I compare two toothpastes from the same company, a fluoride-free and fluoride version. Now the only difference between the two is that one has fluoride and the other one does not (all other ingredients are the same).
But only one has a poison warning…
The one with fluoride.
That’s because each and every fluoride toothpaste sold in the USA and Canada is required by law to be labeled with a poison warning.
Why?
Because it’s poison.
If you’re still not convinced, here’s a picture the fluoride added to your toothpaste.
As you can tell…
There is a massive “TOXIC” sign and skull on the bag filled with fluoride.
Now if you need more reasons than this to start using fluoride-free toothpaste, you’re in luck… I have another 9 reasons. And I’m sure number 6 will convince you for good.
#2. Your body does NOT need fluoride
Not ONE disease is caused by a lack of fluoride, not even tooth decay.
Furthermore, there is not a SINGLE biological process within your body that requires fluoride.1,2,3 This is why unlike vitamin D, K, calcium and many other vitamins and minerals – fluoride is NOT an essential nutrient.
In other words, your body does not want or need fluoride to function.
#3. Your teeth contain LESS than 2% fluoride
You would think from everything we read and are told, our teeth would be full of fluoride.
However, your teeth contain less than 2% fluoride…. In fact, mineralized enamel is made of 89% calcium hydroxyapatite and small amounts of calcium carbonate (4%), calcium fluoride (2%), and magnesium phosphate (1.5%).4
So how does it make sense to focus on the 2% while ignoring the rest?
It doesn’t.
Which brings us to the next reason…
#4. Focusing on the WRONG Thing
Fluoride is shoved into our mouths because it’s supposed to help with remineralization.
Now consider this…
Remineralization is a natural repair process for teeth and heavily depends on diet. Yet many people’s diets are loaded with fluoride AND less than 2% of teeth contain fluoride.
So clearly our bodies don’t want fluoride.
If your body thought fluoride was useful…
It would use it.
So if preventing cavities is important to you, wouldn’t it make more sense to focus on nutrients that are essential to your body, found in your teeth and proven to be important in remineralization?
Of course it does!
This is why you should start using fluoride-free toothpaste AND focus on giving your body the nutrients it needs like vitamin D and quality calcium.
Which is very important since 44.1% of the U.S population does not meet the daily requirement for calcium. In addition, 94.3% of the U.S population does not meet the daily requirement for vitamin D – an essential nutrient that helps the body absorb calcium and phosphorus which makes up over 95% of your teeth.5,6
So forget about fluoride.
And focus on what your body NEEDS.
If you don’t, you’ll be like an architect focusing on what color to paint the building walls – instead of making sure the foundation is strong and won’t collapse…
#5. Fluoride Toothpaste Could Lead To Poor Quality Teeth
Does fluoride re-mineralize your teeth?
When it comes to how it’s done naturally the answer is NO but if you directly apply fluoride to your teeth, like when you use toothpaste, then of course it “re-mineralizes” your teeth.
It’s basic science.
Since fluoride is negatively charged, it will react with positively charged ions found in your teeth like calcium. When it does this, it basically depletes natural hydroxyapatite and makes it’s own fluoride version.
This could be a problem because when it comes to bones, researchers out of the University of Toronto have uncovered that fluoride helps BUILD bone but the strength of bone declined with increasing fluoride content.7
So what makes us think that teeth are not effected in a similar negative way?
Everyone agrees that fluoride “builds” bone but the bone it builds is weak and leads to an increased risk of fractures. So sure fluoride “re-mineralizes” your teeth but does it do a good job?
#6. Non-toxic & Effective Fluoride-Free Toothpaste
Studies have shown fluoride-free toothpaste containing hydroxyapatite is just as effective in remineralization and preventing cavities as fluoride toothpaste.8
The main ingredient in these toothpastes is a naturally occurring mineral form of calcium apatite which is actually found in our teeth.
So by going with a fluoride-free toothpaste containing hydroxyapatite you get the benefits a fluoride toothpaste would give you WITHOUT risking the negative effects that come with fluoride.
So switching is a no brainer.
And if you’d like to know my favorite and by far best option of such toothpaste, read my best fluoride-free toothpaste article (link to article). That’s where I tested 40+ brands and picked the best 5.
#7. Fluoride is NOT Natural
Look at every other website and I can guarantee you they mention how “natural” fluoride is.
Unfortunately, they’re lying to us…
Clearly, fluoride is NOT natural.
As we’ve already mentioned here… fluoride is not an essential nutrient, your teeth contain less than 2% fluoride and let’s not forget the huge “TOXIC” signs printed on the fluoride packaging.
Now technically fluoride is “natural”.
But this is misleading.
Lead, arsenic and mercury are ALL natural but they’re the top 3 most toxic substances on the Earth.
The only thing that matters when deciding if something is “natural” for humans is to figure out the natural levels humans have been exposed to throughout time. And when it comes to fluoride, natural foods (eggs, meat, milk, and fruits), surface water, and human breast milk (as natural as it gets) contain very low levels of fluoride – practically non-existent.
#8. Fluoride Toothpastes Are LOADED With Toxic Ingredients
Not only is fluoride toxic but you’ll find other toxic ingredients in toothpastes that contain fluoride. In fact, I could not find a single fluoride toothpaste that had a good ingredient list.
You can easily check this for yourself by looking at whatever fluoride toothpaste you have in mind and checking to see if it contains any of the following ingredients:
- hydrated silica,
- sorbitol,
- sodium saccharin,
- titanium dioxide,
- glycerin,
- sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate,
- fluoride
- carrageenan
- PEG-8, PEG/PPG
- artificial color (ex. blue 1, yellow 10)
- endocrine disruptors (ex. lavender)
Now I’m not sure why it’s like this.
Maybe the brands that sell fluoride toothpaste know those who use fluoride don’t really care what they put into their body. While in comparison, fluoride-free toothpastes contain much less toxic ingredients with some brands being completely toxic-free.
#9. Fluoride May NOT prevent cavities
We’re told over and over again that fluoride helps prevent cavities but where’s the proof?
Most of the time were just told to believe whoever says it because they’re a doctor or it’s coming from a big organization. But rarely do they ever show you the studies to backup their claims.
Truth is, there really is not that much proof to back up the claim fluoride is a miracle cavity fighter. In fact, there’s a lot of proof to show it doesn’t do much. This proof on why fluoride does NOT work and why it’s dangerous for your health can be found at 69 reasons to oppose fluoride (link to article).
Now in relation to cavities and toothpaste. Most websites promoting fluoride often say something like “you have the demineralization but not yet a full blown cavity in the tooth, the fluoride can be taken up into that demineralized area to help it remineralize”.
BUT we know that there is less than 2% of fluoride in teeth.
So in reality this does not match up.
And let’s not forget there are millions of people who use fluoride-free toothpaste and nothing bad happens to them. In fact, they probably have better teeth then those that use fluoride toothpaste.
#10. To have fluoride work best, you can NOT rinse which is dangerous
Many pro-fluoride people recommend you do not rinse after brushing your teeth with fluoride toothpaste and leave it on your teeth.
This way it has time to work it’s “magic”.
Now I know many of you won’t believe me, it’s even hard for me to believe. Why would anyone leave a substance with a “toxic” and “poison” label on their teeth which will then be slowly swallowed throughout the day and absorbed through their gums into their blood.
So here’s a screenshot of a “doctor” with over 300k followers on Twitter sharing this advice:
Now I don’t know about you but leaving a toxic, non-essential, and unnatural substance on your teeth and in your mouth, does not sound smart or safe to me…
Unfortunately, thousands of people will believe what he’s saying just because he’s a “doctor”.
Should You Use Fluoride-Free Toothpaste?
Well, I think it’s quite obvious that you should drop fluoride and use a fluoride-free toothpaste.
Not only do we now know fluoride is toxic, non-essential to human health, and non-natural. Which leads to countless health effects like lowered IQ, hormonal problems, and weaker bones.7,9,10
But to add insult to injury, fluoride’s effects on disrupting dental plaque can easily be substituted with many other ingredients found in fluoride-free toothpastes. So you can without any risk, switch to a fluoride-free toothpaste and expect the same results.
So if you’d like to get a quality fluoride-free toothpaste, check out my article where I tested 40+ brands and pick the 5 best fluoride-free toothpaste (link to article).
Lastly, if you enjoyed this article I’d greatly appreciate it if you shared it with your friends and family using the blue buttons below. Many people have no clue why they should be using a fluoride-free toothpaste!
References
- Gershon-Cohen J., McClendon J.F. The cariostatic effect of fluorine in tea. J. Albert Einstein Med. Cent. 1957;5:153–154
- Buzalaf M.A., Pessan J.P., Honorio H.M., Cate J.M. Mechanisms of action of fluoride for caries control. Monogr. Oral Sci. 2011;22:97–114
- European Food Safety Authority Scientific Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for fluoride, EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition, and Allergies. EFSA J. 2013;11:3332–3378
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6153988/
- 5.https://lpi.oregonstate.edu/mic/micronutrient-inadequacies/overview#calcium
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7285165/
- Chachra et al. (2010) The long-term effects of water fluoridation on the human skeleton. Journal of Dental Research. 89(11): 1219-1223.
- https://www.nature.com/articles/s41405-019-0026-8
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5915186/
- NRC (2006). National Research Council of the National Academies, Fluoride in Drinking Water: A Scientific Review of EPA’s Standards. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
