New ADA Recommendation: Parents Should Use Fluoride Toothpaste on 12-Month-Olds

According to the American Dental Association, preventing tooth decay can start a lot earlier than previously recommended. Old guidelines advised parents to wait until their children turned two before introducing them to fluoride toothpaste. Now, the association has recommended all parents to start using fluoride toothpaste on children younger than two.

The updated guidelines stated that it is safe to use a rice-grain sized amount of fluoride toothpaste for young toddlers starting at 12 to 14-months. Parents should only apply a smear of the toothpaste and teach their children to remember to always spit out excess paste when they are brushing their teeth. For children aged three to six, parents can start to use more toothpaste in the size of a pea-blob. The association reminded parents that children should learn to brush their teeth twice a day.

Fluoride has been shown in studies to cause a multitude of negative health effects, including fertility issues, cancer, cardiovascular disease, endocrine disruption, neurotoxic effects, pineal gland and gastrointestinal issues, among others. Fluoride was even once prescribed in Europe as a drug that reduced thyroid activity.

Children in America are already being exposed to large amounts of fluoride as it is through widespread fluoridated water consumption, on top of the fact that in many cases that same fluoridated water is used to grow a lot of the nation’s produce. The majority of fluoride added to water supplies in this country is a byproduct of the phosphate fertilizer industry.

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