World expert on lead now warns of fluoride's neurotoxicity

NEW YORK, Jan. 31, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- A major review article in the journal Pediatric Medicine by Dr. David Bellinger includes fluoride in a list of chemicals known or suspected to interfere with the neurodevelopment of children, reports the Fluoride Action Network (FAN).

Bellinger, recognized as one the leading experts in the world on the neurotoxicity of lead, holds three important positions in Boston: two at Harvard and one at Boston Children's Hospital.

In his review of fluoride's neurotoxicity, Bellinger cites the meta-analysis of 27 IQ studies from China and Iran (Choi et al., 2012); a follow-up study in China he co-authored (Choi et al., 2015) and the more recent US-government funded mother-offspring studies from Mexico City (Bashash et al., 2017 and 2018). These latter studies, which controlled for many possible confounders, found a very strong association between fluoride levels in the pregnant mothers' urine and lowered IQ in their offspring. These fluoride urine levels from the mothers in Mexico City correspond to the fluoride levels in pregnant women in fluoridated communities in Canada (Till et al., 2018).

While the mainstream media covered the Choi meta-analysis from 2012, they have ignored all the major neurotoxicity studies published since then. Meanwhile, they continue to go overboard on low-quality studies that focus on tooth decay.

According to Paul Connett, PhD, FAN Director, "We hope that when more pediatricians read about these important neurotoxicity studies –especially the mother-offspring studies– that they will warn women of child-bearing age to avoid all sources of fluoride during pregnancy and parents not to bottle-feed their infants with formula prepared with fluoridated tap water."

Connett added, "There are over 350 published studies on fluoride's effect on the brain: 130 human studies, over 200 animal studies, and 33 cell studies."

SOURCE Fluoride Action Network

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