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Fluoride Treatment

You’ve probably heard about “fluoride” all your life. But what is it? Something that was concocted in a lab somewhere? And with all the fluoride in toothpaste and drinking water, why would anyone need a fluoride treatment?

You may be surprised to learn that fluoride is a naturally-occurring mineral found in soil, water, and foods. It also happens to be found in teeth. Over the years, the dental community discovered that fluoride, applied directly to the teeth (and even taken internally as a supplement), reduces the likelihood of decay by strengthening tooth enamel.

Everybody can benefit from fluoride, which is why communities add small amounts of it to their water supplies. And dentists have recommended fluoride toothpastes and mouth rinses for decades. But there are times when concentrated amounts of fluoride, well above what you can get from over-the-counter toothpastes and rinses, are required to strengthen teeth.

What makes someone a candidate for a fluoride treatment? The basic requirement is weakened tooth enamel or the risk of it, both of which can have several sources, among them: poor oral hygiene (either through neglect or due to the difficulties presented by wearing braces), lack of access to dental care, eating a poorly-balanced diet, already-existing decay, bacteria gathering around existing fillings.

There are also certain non-dental conditions that can necessitate fluoride treatments, such as: eating disorders, drug/alcohol abuse and radiation therapy of the head or neck.

A professional fluoride treatment is a very simple, and usually very quick, procedure. There are a number of dentist-grade products available, featuring various methods of applying the fluoride to the teeth. Whether it’s a liquid, foam, gel or varnish-like material, the fluoride-delivering product is applied to the teeth with a swab/brush, given as a rinse, or provided in a tray in which the teeth are allowed to soak.

At Aria Dental, we’ve provided many patients with fluoride treatments in Annapolis, and will be happy to help you discover if a fluoride treatment is right for you

Eventually, research found that brown staining didn’t occur until after a certain level of fluoride in a community’s water. That sent a government dental expert, Dr. Trendley Dean, down the path of studying if maintaining a certain level of fluoride content could provide the decay-resisting effect of fluoride while avoiding mottled enamel. His research showed that fluoridated water could, indeed, significantly reduce childhood tooth decay without staining; that’s why, even up till today, many children are benefitting from fluoridated water.

That’s a very condensed telling of the fluoride story, but next time you see fluoride advertised on a toothpaste tube, or mentioned as an additive you your local drinking water, keep a good thought for a persistent dentist named Frederick McKay.

In 1923, McKay received word that brown staining had begun among the children of an Idaho community, shortly after the building of a pipeline to a spring several miles away. While analysis of the water showed nothing unusual, McKay suggested that the town try another water source.

Within a few years, mottling among the community’s children stopped and McKay had evidence to support his pet theory of a waterborne cause of mottled enamel. Eventually, he and another colleague were able to analyze another community’s water using much more sophisticated technology that McKay had access to before, which led to the discovery that communities in which mottled enamel had occurred also had high levels of fluoride in their water.

A Brief History of Fluoride

Early 1900s

Eventually, research found that brown staining didn’t occur until after a certain level of fluoride in a community’s water. That sent a government dental expert, Dr. Trendley Dean, down the path of studying if maintaining a certain level of fluoride content could provide the decay-resisting effect of fluoride while avoiding mottled enamel. His research showed that fluoridated water could, indeed, significantly reduce childhood tooth decay without staining; that’s why, even up till today, many children are benefitting from fluoridated water.

That’s a very condensed telling of the fluoride story, but next time you see fluoride advertised on a toothpaste tube, or mentioned as an additive you your local drinking water, keep a good thought for a persistent dentist named Frederick McKay.
1923

In 1923, McKay received word that brown staining had begun among the children of an Idaho community, shortly after the building of a pipeline to a spring several miles away. While analysis of the water showed nothing unusual, McKay suggested that the town try another water source.

Within a few years, mottling among the community’s children stopped and McKay had evidence to support his pet theory of a waterborne cause of mottled enamel. Eventually, he and another colleague were able to analyze another community’s water using much more sophisticated technology that McKay had access to before, which led to the discovery that communities in which mottled enamel had occurred also had high levels of fluoride in their water.
1930s-

Eventually, research found that brown staining didn’t occur until after a certain level of fluoride in a community’s water. That sent a government dental expert, Dr. Trendley Dean, down the path of studying if maintaining a certain level of fluoride content could provide the decay-resisting effect of fluoride while avoiding mottled enamel. His research showed that fluoridated water could, indeed, significantly reduce childhood tooth decay without staining; that’s why, even up till today, many children are benefitting from fluoridated water.

That’s a very condensed telling of the fluoride story, but next time you see fluoride advertised on a toothpaste tube, or mentioned as an additive you your local drinking water, keep a good thought for a persistent dentist named Frederick McKay.