USA - Letter: Fluoride threat to residents and pets

I am disappointed Snowmass is revisiting the discussion of fluoridating the water. I first looked into the effects of fluoridation when I realized it was being done. My concern initially was not for myself, but for my dog.

I’ve had dogs all my life and only have had an issue with my dog and cysts since living where the water is fluoridated. My dog now, a rescued lab mix, has had two cysts surgically removed and has internal and external cysts all over his body, face, legs, feet and tail. He did not have any cysts, to my knowledge, when I adopted him at age 3. Since I found no research in the correlation between the cysts, cancer and canine consumption of fluoride, I can only draw my own conclusion into the connection.

My initial research was only involving dogs and fluoridated water. I found there is no known safe level, but one could assess it would be much lower than that for humans. I also found pet food, particularly those that use mechanically de-boned meat, can contain high levels of fluoride. It has been suggested to avoid these dog foods. To quote the International Association of Animal Massage & Bodywork website:

“With potentially high levels of fluoride (sometimes called fluorine) consumed by dogs, is it possible as in people that symptoms of arthritis, spinal abnormalities, etc. in dogs could actually be skeletal fluorosis (over-accumulation of fluoride in the bone)?”

This led me to further research effects on humans. The benefit of fluoride in preventing caries is from direct application to teeth and not ingestion, according to www.fluoridealert.org. However, prevention of caries seems to be the prevalent argument for fluoridation of drinking water.