Influence of fertilizers on fluoride accumulation in tea leaves

Fluoride accumulation in tea leaves has been a widely concerned issue because tea drinking is currently one of the most popular beverages in the world. Unfortunately, the fertilizers used to promote the growth of tea trees inevitably cause serious fluoride accumulation in tea leaves. Here we disclose that the use of plant polyphenols-Ce hybrid materials as chelating absorbents could effectively suppress the accumulation of fluoride in tea leaves even compound fertilizers were applied during the growing period of tea plants. The adjacent phenolic hydroxyls of plant polyphenols are able to chelate with the Al3+ in soil, preventing the formation and absorption of AlFx complexes in tea trees. The adsorbents can effective absorb the F- via the positively charged Ce4+ based on electrostatic attractions. In filed plot experiments, the fluoride accumulation in tea leaves was substantially reduced up to 74.75% when the compound fertilizers were used accompanied with the polyphenols-Ce adsorbents.

Dentists never take in to account how much fluoride people such as heavy tea drinkers consume and the amount swallowed or gargled when they continuously call for fluoridation.