Fluoride
Menasha Elec & Water Util
Fluoride occurs naturally in surface and groundwater and is also added to drinking water by many water systems. Read More.
Fluoride has been promoted as a chemical that reduces dental cavities. Yet it is now well-established that fluoride primarily exerts its protective effects through topical mechanisms, such as sodium fluoride in toothpaste and mouthwash. In contrast, long-term ingestion of fluoride in water increases dental fluorosis, which includes mottling, pitting and weakening of the teeth. EPA's maximum legal limit is set at 4 parts per million (ppm) to prevent skeletal fluorosis, a condition where bones become brittle and more susceptible to fractures, although these effects may occur at lower doses.
Even fluoride levels of 0.7 ppm, the amount of fluoride in drinking water recommended by the U.S. Public Health Service, can result in too much fluoride for bottle-fed babies. EWG recommends that caregivers mix baby formula with fluoride-free water. The National Toxicology Program is investigating the potential for low doses of fluoride to alter thyroid function and childhood brain development.
Samples
Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)
Samples exceeding
health guidelines
Testing results - average by year
| Year | Average result | Samples taken | Detections | Range of results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 0.759 ppm | 25 | 25 | 0.610 ppm - 0.900 ppm |
| 2015 | 0.543 ppm | 25 | 25 | 0.0722 ppm - 0.800 ppm |
| 2016 | 0.769 ppm | 25 | 25 | 0.631 ppm - 1.03 ppm |
| 2017 | 0.775 ppm | 25 | 25 | 0.620 ppm - 0.910 ppm |
| 2018 | 0.746 ppm | 25 | 25 | 0.605 ppm - 0.904 ppm |
| 2019 | 0.719 ppm | 25 | 25 | 0.540 ppm - 0.810 ppm |
ppm = parts per million
State and national drinking water standards and health guidelines
EPA Maximum Contaminant
Level (MCL) 4 ppm
ppm = parts per million
All test results
| Date | Lab ID | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 2014-01-07 | 115604001 | 0.660 ppm |
| 2014-01-07 | 115604001 | 0.729 ppm |
| 2014-02-11 | 119753001 | 0.760 ppm |
| 2014-02-11 | 119753001 | 0.850 ppm |
| 2014-03-11 | 122795001 | 0.697 ppm |
| 2014-03-11 | 122795001 | 0.850 ppm |
| 2014-04-08 | 778695 | 0.690 ppm |
| 2014-04-09 | 127341001 | 0.721 ppm |
| 2014-04-09 | 127341001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2014-05-13 | 133068001 | 0.730 ppm |
| 2014-05-13 | 133068001 | 0.880 ppm |
| 2014-06-09 | 138430001 | 0.610 ppm |
| 2014-06-09 | 138430001 | 0.741 ppm |
| 2014-07-02 | 143020001 | 0.851 ppm |
| 2014-07-02 | 143020001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2014-08-12 | 151420001 | 0.681 ppm |
| 2014-08-12 | 151420001 | 0.760 ppm |
| 2014-09-10 | 156836001 | 0.745 ppm |
| 2014-09-10 | 156836001 | 0.780 ppm |
| 2014-10-08 | 162992001 | 0.668 ppm |
| 2014-10-08 | 162992001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2014-11-12 | 168517001 | 0.723 ppm |
| 2014-11-12 | 168517001 | 0.820 ppm |
| 2014-12-11 | 172376001 | 0.639 ppm |
| 2014-12-11 | 172376001 | 0.780 ppm |
| 2015-01-12 | 175595001 | 0.602 ppm |
| 2015-01-12 | 175595001 | 0.680 ppm |
| 2015-02-10 | 179623001 | 0.635 ppm |
| 2015-02-10 | 179623001 | 0.720 ppm |
| 2015-03-11 | 847795 | 0.600 ppm |
| 2015-03-11 | 183424001 | 0.654 ppm |
| 2015-03-11 | 183424001 | 0.720 ppm |
| 2015-04-08 | 188082001 | 0.673 ppm |
| 2015-04-08 | 188082001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2015-05-11 | 193585001 | 0.0877 ppm |
| 2015-05-11 | 193585001 | 0.240 ppm |
| 2015-06-15 | 200352001 | 0.0722 ppm |
| 2015-06-15 | 200352001 | 0.160 ppm |
| 2015-07-21 | 207574001 | 0.0794 ppm |
| 2015-07-21 | 207574001 | 0.200 ppm |
| 2015-08-05 | 210424001 | 0.535 ppm |
| 2015-08-05 | 210424001 | 0.620 ppm |
| 2015-09-09 | 216705001 | 0.613 ppm |
| 2015-09-09 | 216705001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2015-10-13 | 224030001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2015-10-13 | 224030001 | 0.720 ppm |
| 2015-11-13 | 228883001 | 0.695 ppm |
| 2015-11-13 | 228883001 | 0.760 ppm |
| 2015-12-07 | 232236001 | 0.644 ppm |
| 2015-12-07 | 232236001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2016-01-11 | 235409001 | 0.652 ppm |
| 2016-01-11 | 235409001 | 0.740 ppm |
| 2016-02-10 | 239697001 | 0.631 ppm |
| 2016-02-10 | 239697001 | 0.830 ppm |
| 2016-03-03 | 908041 | 0.770 ppm |
| 2016-03-10 | 243625001 | 0.660 ppm |
| 2016-03-10 | 243625001 | 0.726 ppm |
| 2016-04-12 | 248888001 | 0.654 ppm |
| 2016-04-12 | 248888001 | 0.740 ppm |
| 2016-05-10 | 255350001 | 0.678 ppm |
| 2016-05-10 | 255350001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2016-06-06 | 259408001 | 0.758 ppm |
| 2016-06-06 | 259408001 | 0.850 ppm |
| 2016-07-11 | 266253001 | 0.716 ppm |
| 2016-07-11 | 266253001 | 0.840 ppm |
| 2016-08-15 | 273058001 | 0.641 ppm |
| 2016-08-15 | 273058001 | 0.720 ppm |
| 2016-09-14 | 279299001 | 0.676 ppm |
| 2016-09-14 | 279299001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2016-10-10 | 283877001 | 0.819 ppm |
| 2016-10-10 | 283877001 | 0.890 ppm |
| 2016-11-08 | 288552001 | 0.995 ppm |
| 2016-11-08 | 288552001 | 1.03 ppm |
| 2016-12-06 | 292299001 | 0.845 ppm |
| 2016-12-06 | 292299001 | 0.860 ppm |
| 2017-01-10 | 296063001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2017-01-10 | 296063001 | 0.833 ppm |
| 2017-02-07 | 299484001 | 0.780 ppm |
| 2017-02-07 | 299484001 | 0.839 ppm |
| 2017-03-08 | 303574001 | 0.810 ppm |
| 2017-03-08 | 303574001 | 0.813 ppm |
| 2017-04-11 | 309728001 | 0.855 ppm |
| 2017-04-11 | 982482 | 0.860 ppm |
| 2017-04-11 | 309728001 | 0.910 ppm |
| 2017-05-10 | 315478001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2017-05-10 | 315478001 | 0.756 ppm |
| 2017-06-06 | 320533001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2017-06-06 | 320533001 | 0.765 ppm |
| 2017-07-10 | 328284001 | 0.786 ppm |
| 2017-07-10 | 328284001 | 0.790 ppm |
| 2017-08-02 | 333407001 | 0.820 ppm |
| 2017-08-02 | 333407001 | 0.830 ppm |
| 2017-09-05 | 340712001 | 0.714 ppm |
| 2017-09-05 | 340712001 | 0.720 ppm |
| 2017-10-02 | 346761001 | 0.665 ppm |
| 2017-10-02 | 346761001 | 0.710 ppm |
| 2017-11-08 | 353826001 | 0.620 ppm |
| 2017-11-08 | 353826001 | 0.890 ppm |
| 2017-12-11 | 359350001 | 0.678 ppm |
| 2017-12-11 | 359350001 | 0.690 ppm |
| 2018-01-08 | 362328001 | 0.650 ppm |
| 2018-01-08 | 362328001 | 0.740 ppm |
| 2018-02-07 | 366234001 | 0.605 ppm |
| 2018-02-07 | 366234001 | 0.660 ppm |
| 2018-02-13 | 1040705 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2018-03-06 | 370210001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2018-03-06 | 370210001 | 0.775 ppm |
| 2018-04-04 | 374796001 | 0.770 ppm |
| 2018-04-04 | 374796001 | 0.795 ppm |
| 2018-05-10 | 381518001 | 0.870 ppm |
| 2018-05-10 | 381518001 | 0.904 ppm |
| 2018-06-11 | 388382001 | 0.690 ppm |
| 2018-06-11 | 388382001 | 0.824 ppm |
| 2018-07-06 | 392470001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2018-07-06 | 392470001 | 0.847 ppm |
| 2018-08-02 | 398596001 | 0.771 ppm |
| 2018-08-02 | 398596001 | 0.780 ppm |
| 2018-09-07 | 405870001 | 0.680 ppm |
| 2018-09-07 | 405870001 | 0.698 ppm |
| 2018-10-05 | 413989001 | 0.652 ppm |
| 2018-10-05 | 413989001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2018-11-05 | 418774001 | 0.665 ppm |
| 2018-11-05 | 418774001 | 0.730 ppm |
| 2018-12-10 | 424819001 | 0.658 ppm |
| 2018-12-10 | 424819001 | 0.790 ppm |
| 2019-01-10 | 427429001 | 0.703 ppm |
| 2019-01-10 | 427429001 | 0.770 ppm |
| 2019-02-11 | 1104467 | 0.540 ppm |
| 2019-02-12 | 431564001 | 0.591 ppm |
| 2019-02-12 | 431564001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2019-03-13 | 435601001 | 0.783 ppm |
| 2019-03-13 | 435601001 | 0.810 ppm |
| 2019-04-05 | 439806001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2019-04-05 | 439806001 | 0.794 ppm |
| 2019-05-13 | 446263001 | 0.758 ppm |
| 2019-05-13 | 446263001 | 0.780 ppm |
| 2019-06-04 | 450250001 | 0.790 ppm |
| 2019-06-04 | 450250001 | 0.793 ppm |
| 2019-07-15 | 458399001 | 0.706 ppm |
| 2019-07-15 | 458399001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-08-14 | 464236001 | 0.625 ppm |
| 2019-08-14 | 464236001 | 0.740 ppm |
| 2019-09-10 | 469900001 | 0.601 ppm |
| 2019-09-10 | 469900001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2019-10-08 | 475907001 | 0.737 ppm |
| 2019-10-08 | 475907001 | 0.810 ppm |
| 2019-11-11 | 481545001 | 0.583 ppm |
| 2019-11-11 | 481545001 | 0.710 ppm |
| 2019-12-06 | 485205001 | 0.709 ppm |
| 2019-12-06 | 485205001 | 0.730 ppm |