Fluoride is a naturally occurring substance found in water, plants, rocks, soil, air and most foods.
Topping up the natural fluoride to a level of between 0.6 and 0.9 parts per million in community water supplies provides crucial additional protection against a disease of growing concern.
More than 75 per cent of residents in every other Australian state and territory have had fluoridated water for between 30 and 50 years.
Less than 5 per cent of the Queensland population currently have access to the benefits of fluoridated water.
Most of Queensland's fluoridated towns (Townsville, Mareeba, Moranbah and Dalby) use sodium fluoride, the same substance used in the fluoride tablets many of us took as children. It dissolves completely in water, and breaks down into harmless sodium and fluoride ions.
The compound more often used in large cities (and also in Bamaga) is fluorosilicic acid or its salt, sodium hexafluorosilicate. These dissolve completely and harmlessly in water, breaking down into hydrogen ions, fluoride ions, silica and water. The fluoride ions in artificially fluoridated water are identical to those found in naturally fluoridated water.
There is no difference between the absorption of fluoride from artificially fluoridated drinking water or drinking water in which the fluoride is present naturally.
Did You Know? |
Lots of Queenslanders assume their water supply is already fluoridated. But the measure is actually only provided to residents in a small number of communities.
Fun Fact |
Queen Elizabeth I's teeth were noticeably discoloured. A German traveller speculated that the discoloration was due to the Queen's excessive consumption of sugar, and made the first recorded association between sugar and tooth decay.
Copyright | Disclaimer | Privacy | Feedback
|
Other languages
© The State of Queensland (Queensland Health) 2008.
