New US Study – Fluoridated water causing behavioural problems in children.

Pre-natal fluoride exposure has serious consequences for mental health, according to another major study just published in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

According to Tracy Bastain, senior author of the study and an associate professor of clinical population and public health science “Our results showed that higher fluoride levels in mother’s urine were associated with significantly increased neurodevelopmental problems in their three-year-old children, especially for internalizing problems like depression and anxiety…These results are very concerning from a public health perspective, given that the majority of U.S. communities have fluoridated water.”

This was reported in Newsweek, which went on to say “In their study, Bastain and colleagues found that a 0.68 milligram per liter increase in maternal fluoride exposure was associated with a near-doubling increase in their child’s risk of developing neurobehavioral problems, including emotional reactivity, headaches, anxiety and symptoms linked to autism.”

And the Los Angeles Times reported on the study confirming fluoride exposure was associated with “an increased risk of neurobehavioral problems at age 3, including symptoms that characterize autism spectrum disorder. The association was seen among women who consumed fluoride in amounts that are considered typical in Los Angeles and across the country.”
The study was conducted on mother-child pairs in Los Angeles, and found significant increases in psychological problem scores for both internal (e.g. depression and anxiety) and external (e.g. autism) conditions.

This latest US study is the first study of its kind carried out in the US but is on top of a growing number of US Government-funded studies from Canada and Mexico. It also comes after a major six year review carried out by the US Government’s National Toxicology Program that reviewed all fluoride IQ studies and found that fluoride “with moderate confidence, that higher fluoride exposure … is consistently associated with lower IQ in children.”

This study suggests that fluoridation is likely to be one of the reasons New Zealand children are suffering from record levels of anxiety and depression.

The fluoridation level recommended by the NZ Ministry of Health is 0.85ppm (midrange between 0.7 and 1ppm). This is 21% higher than the maximum target of 0.7ppm in the USA.
US scientists are calling for a warning that pregnant women should avoid fluoridated water. In 2018 the NZ Supreme Court held that once fluoride was in the water it was almost impossible to avoid completely and is “compulsory medical treatment”.