Fluoride In Coffee: Ranking & Guide (238+ Coffees Tested)

It seems like fluoride has found its way into many things, but is there fluoride in coffee?

The beverage that millions around the world rely on everyday to get their day started.

Unfortunately, bad news is there is very little research in regards to fluoride in coffee. However, there is good news… I’ve tested 238+ samples of coffee for fluoride and have new information to share.

Such as “hidden” fluoride in coffee, fluoride in store-bought coffee (Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts & Tim Hortons), along with the best kind of fluoride-free coffee.

What We Already Know About Fluoride In Coffee

Fluoride in coffee is unique.

For instance, fluoride levels in coffee is not “high”, especially compared to fluoride in tea or even fluoride in kombucha.

However, studies have shown that fluoride blood levels are higher by up to 100% when fluoride is ingested alongside caffeine (like when drinking coffee) compared to ingestion alongside water.^1,2 Which may mean more fluoride is absorbed within the body. And lower levels of fluoride may have a stronger effect.

But don’t worry.

You don’t have to quit coffee.

All you have to do is take care of the main sources of fluoride outlined in the free fluoride detox guide (link to guide). This way you have no fluoride to worry about.

How Much Fluoride Is In Coffee?

Considering there is little research on fluoride in coffee, I decided to test 238+ types of coffee for fluoride (87 whole beans, 14 Nespressos, 118 pods, 16 instant packs, and 2 cold brews).

After testing it’s clear coffee naturally contains very little fluoride. To be exact, fluoride levels range from 0.0 to 0.1 ppm – a very low and safe amount (basically fluoride-free). However, there are 3 mistakes that could result in coffee containing fluoride (discussed below).

But in the meantime, you can check if I tested the coffee you drink by searching the table I put together below, as all the results were put into a table you can search and filter.

5 Tips On Using The Table

If I’m being honest, I’d skip this section.

Yes, I worked very hard on testing all these coffees and putting this table together. But you’ll notice there is very little to no fluoride in coffee. So if you drink coffee, I highly recommend you read the next section after the table. That’s where I talk about the very interesting information.

But here’s a few tips for using the table.

1) Use The Search Bar…

You can search the exact brand or flavor of coffee by entering it’s name into the search bar.

2) Sort Fluoride Content In Coffee From High or Low…

By clicking on “Fluoride” once, you’ll sort the fluoride content in coffee from low to high.

While if you click on it two times, the fluoride content will show from high to low.

3) Narrow Your Search By Using The Filters…

By clicking on “type” you’ll be able to sort through a variety of coffees (cold brew, instant, Nespresso, pods, and whole beans).

While if you click on “roast” you’ll be able to look through light, medium, and dark roasts.

4) Sort Through Coffee That Is Approved…

By clicking on “Approved?” and then selecting “YES”, you’ll be able to see which coffees I believe are better than the rest.

Specifically, being approved means the coffee is safe in regards to fluoride, does not contain any pesticides and natural flavors.

5) Combine ALL Tips To Find Your New Favorite Coffee…

Let’s say you want to find…

Toxic-free, dark-roast whole beans.

To do this, first click on roast and select “Dark“, then select type and click on “Whole Beans“, and lastly, click on approved and select “YES“.

Fluoride Content On 238+ Tested Coffees (Searchable Table)

The table below contains the fluoride levels of 238+ types of coffee (87 whole beans, 14 Nespressos, 118 pods, 16 instant packs, and 2 cold brews). While information on coffee chains like Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts will be discussed in the next section.

6 Important Things You Should Know About Coffee & Fluoride

Taking a look at the test results of 238+ coffee samples, it’s clear that coffee does not contain fluoride. However, this might not be entirely true.

Let me explain why.

1. Hidden Fluoride In Coffee?

When it comes to fluoride in coffee, this is where it gets interesting.

Specifically with Sulfuryl fluoride.

A fumigant that’s widely used on many post-harvest foods, especially coffee beans.³

Now the way fumigation works, is by filling an enclosed area with gaseous fumigants to suffocate or poison the pests within. At that point, its toxic effect appears within the cells of the insects by disrupting glycolysis and other critical metabolic processes.⁴

In other words, killing them.

However, it doesn’t just effect bugs.

Especially with leftover residue.

In fact, if you take a look at the Federal Register, it shows federal allowances (USA) for inorganic fluoride residues in food fumigated with sulfuryl fluoride fall into toxic levels that are known to cause serious health complications, including crippling skeletal fluorosis.⁴ Up to 15 ppm of inorganic fluoride residue on coffee, while sulfuryl fluoride is capped at 1 ppm.³

Thankfully there’s an easy solution.

I’ll explained in the next section.

2. Pesticides In Coffee

Time to add insult to injury…

Coffee beans are among the most heavily sprayed crops in the world.

Beans are steeped in synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and insecticides- creating a swirling cocktail of toxins in your morning cup of coffee. In fact, up to 45 different pesticides are currently used on coffee in the USA.⁵

Many with the ability to wreak havoc on human health. And many studies linking increased pesticide exposure to cancer, fertility issues, Alzheimer’s, ADHD and even birth defects.^6-11

You’d think this practice would stop?

Or at least slow down.

But no, chemical usage continues to grow all over the world. Which means it’s up to you to protect yourself.

Thankfully, it’s quite easy…

If you buy organic coffee, you’ll avoid many of the nasty things sprayed on coffee beans. But most importantly, it’s key to buy from a brand that takes pride in doing it the right way (I’ll tell you about my favorite brands in #6 of this section).

3. Fluoride In Store-Bought Coffee? (Starbucks, McDonald’s, Tim Hortons & More)

Up until now, we’ve been talking about coffee made at home with filtered water.

Water with NO fluoride.

But what if you buy coffee at a shop like Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts or Tim Hortons?

Do they use filtered water or do they serve you coffee with tap water that contains a mix of fluoride, chlorine and a dash of lead?

Thankfully, I’ve been able to test samples from dozens of different coffee shops. Like Starbucks, A&W, McDonalds, Tim Hortons, Subway and many local locations.

With some shocking results.

Of all the brands I tested, NONE of them removed fluoride. Which means they ALL either did not filter their water or the filters they were using did not do a good job.

Very sad if you think about it.

All it would cost a store to filter their water is a couple pennies… Like imagine going to Starbucks, paying a billion dollars for a cup of coffee, only to have tap water used.

Tragic.

Especially when you consider the pipes water travels in before it reaches our homes and these businesses. And not all are this bad but here’s a picture of pipes delivering water to a home in Jackson, Mississippi.

Now it could be better or worse…

However, old and outdated pipes is a well-known issue in many countries like the USA. Many of these pipes not only look like this but also leach lead from them, which adds to the list of toxins coming out of our tap.

So it’s not just fluoride.

And in Starbucks’ defense…

They are one of the ONLY coffee shops that filter their water. So I think making your own from home is the way to go but if you have to, Starbucks would not be the worst choice. Poorly filtered is better than not filtered.

Which brings us to the next point.

4. Avoid This Popular Mistake

By far the biggest mistake.

Sure coffee beans naturally don’t contain fluoride. But the other main concern is the water you use. Which is where many people make a mistake even if they think they’re not.

Including those who use filters.

Or buy bottled water.

I say this because a lot of brands love to lie about if their filters can remove fluoride. So if you do use a filter, enter your email below and I’ll send you the test results of the 40+ filters I’ve tested.

So you can double check your filter.

Also useful for those interested in getting a filter, so they can avoid being tricked.

And on that note, for those that are wondering… I’d say the most popular and easiest way of getting started would have to be getting a filter pitcher from Clearly Filtered (link to their website). One of the only products I trust for pitchers.

While another solid option would be reverse osmosis systems, one of the most reliable ways of removing fluoride (what I’m installing in the photo below).

While for bottled water, it’s tricky.

Overall, not the biggest fan.

Biggest reason is because they come in plastic, which is as BIG of a problem as fluoride. Many people just ignore it but the plastic leaches into the water and is just bad news for your health.

However, there are good brands that come in glass. Just be prepared to pay a pretty penny.

Now if you want to know if a certain brand of bottled water has fluoride, I suggest you visit my article on bottled water without fluoride (list of fluoride levels for 298+ brands).

5. Does Roasting Remove Or Transform Fluoride?

After testing hundreds of coffee’s only to see 0.0 ppm each and every time…

A new thought emerged.

Maybe coffee beans contain fluoride but the process of roasting either removed or transformed the fluoride, making it undetectable to fluoride testing?

To confirm this possibility I decided to get my hands on unroasted green coffee beans.

Once I found a coffee roastery, I bought 24 different samples of green beans, made green bean coffee, and tested for fluoride.

The results…

Each and every sample came back fluoride-free, confirming that green coffee beans also do not contain fluoride.

6. What Coffee Do I Recommend?

The goal here is to enjoy a cup of coffee while minimizing the effect it has on your health. And a coffee that does not contain fluoride, pesticides and other toxins is a great place to start.

So after going through more coffee than I could have ever imagined, a few brands stuck out.

Natural Force and Clean Coffee Co are by far the best quality, pride themselves in doing it the right way and most importantly, make their coffee quality lab results available to the public. While a cheaper but great alternative would be Kicking Horse.

Concluding Thoughts

At this point you’ve learned everything you need to know about fluoride in coffee.

But let’s not forget, if you continue drinking coffee it’s very important to eliminate all fluoride exposure. As stated before, caffeine may help fluoride absorb into the body. But even if that’s not true, you still want to eliminate fluoride from your life.

Your bones and joints will thank you.

So I’d highly suggest visiting the fluoride detox page, where you’ll go through 10 steps to completely eliminate fluoride exposure and detox your body of stored fluoride.

Anyways, that’s all for this article.

If you have a few seconds, share this article with your friends and family using the blue sharing buttons below. It’s greatly appreciated and with so many people drinking coffee nowadays, you’re bound to help someone by sharing this information.

References

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5589785/#CR34
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2326284
3. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2005/07/15/05-13982/sulfuryl-fluoride-pesticide-tolerance
4. https://www.fluorideresearch.org/383/files/383175-177.pdf
5. https://bcglobal.bryantchristie.com/db#/
6. https://www.nature.com/scitable/blog/green-science/the_dangers_of_pesticides/#:~:text=After%20countless%20studies%2C%20pesticides%20have,system%2C%20and%20the%20endocrine%20system.
7. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18032334/
8. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/hsph-in-the-news/pesticides-produce-fertility-women/#:~:text=Eating%20fruits%20and%20vegetables%20with,Chan%20School%20of%20Public%20Health.
9. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5007474/
10. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/186163
11. https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/repro/pesticides.html