If you were raised in America, you probably associate fluoride with healthy teeth, but behind the shiny toothpaste tubes and ADA proclamations lies a massive debate that has been raging for years.

While fluoridation of American drinking water may seem like the surest form of preventative medicine — fluoridate kids from birth and they'll suffer fewer cavities later — a growing community of doctors and scientists believe that fluoride is a toxic chemical that should be nowhere near public drinking water.

According to fluoridation opponents, the fluoride found in water is actually an industrial hazardous waste product called silicofluoride. This chemical is supposedly more toxic than lead. Ironically, fluoridated communities are also said to have as much dental decay as those that are non-fluoridated.

Anti-fluoridites have a comprehensive list of reasons why Americans should be fluoride-free and “mass medication” is at the top. Though the AMA claims that fluoride is just “one of forty chemicals used to treat water,” it is supposedly the only chemical added to public drinking water to treat (or prevent) illness.

Looking for more information on the fluoride controversy? Mercola has numerous links on the subject (The Fluoride Debate: A Response to the AMA's Fluoridation Facts is particularly illuminating).

(Illustration: Patrick Regout, Las Vegas Life)