Fluoride
Whitehall Waterworks
Fluoride occurs naturally in surface and groundwater and is also added to drinking water by many water systems to prevent cavities and support oral health in people.
In 2015, the Department of Health and Human Services updated its recommendation of an optimal level of 0.7 parts per million, or ppm, added to drinking water based on the health benefits of tooth decay prevention. Studies have shown that fluoride added to community water systems at this level reduces dental cavities, especially in children.
And studies have conclusively shown that fluoride in toothpaste and mouthwash can also provide these benefits.
Read More.
Health Concerns
Although the HHS-recommended level of 0.7 ppm can help promote oral health in children and adults, this level is likely too high for bottle-fed babies. EWG recommends that caregivers mix baby formula with fluoride-free water.
And fluoride in water at higher levels can be detrimental for everyone, especially children.
Long-term ingestion of higher levels of fluoride in water increases dental fluorosis, which includes mottling, pitting and weakening of the teeth in children.
A 2024 authoritative assessment by the National Toxicology Program found that higher levels of fluoride exposure, such as drinking water containing more than 1.5 ppm of fluoride, are associated with lower IQ in children. The conclusion was based on studies in human populations outside of the U.S.
Affecting systems with naturally occurring fluoride, 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 fracture. But these effects may occur at lower levels of exposure, raising concerns that the current limit may not adequately protect public health.
Samples
Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)
Samples exceeding
health guidelines
Testing results - average by year
| Year | Average result | Samples taken | Detections | Range of results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 0.761 ppm | 24 | 24 | 0.389 ppm - 1.000 ppm |
| 2019 | 0.825 ppm | 24 | 24 | 0.700 ppm - 1.000 ppm |
| 2020 | 0.817 ppm | 21 | 21 | 0.280 ppm - 0.943 ppm |
| 2021 | 0.813 ppm | 28 | 28 | 0.620 ppm - 0.979 ppm |
| 2022 | 0.796 ppm | 24 | 24 | 0.355 ppm - 0.888 ppm |
| 2023 | 0.725 ppm | 25 | 25 | 0.341 ppm - 0.880 ppm |
ppm = parts per million
State, National, and Health Guidelines for Drinking Water
EPA Maximum Contaminant
Level (MCL): 4 ppm
ppm = parts per million
All test results
| Date | Lab ID | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-01-17 | 363515001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2018-01-17 | 363515001 | 0.853 ppm |
| 2018-02-12 | 366689001 | 0.809 ppm |
| 2018-02-12 | 366689001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2018-03-07 | 370120001 | 0.797 ppm |
| 2018-03-07 | 370120001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2018-04-10 | 375817001 | 0.389 ppm |
| 2018-04-10 | 375817001 | 0.400 ppm |
| 2018-05-08 | 381034001 | 0.600 ppm |
| 2018-05-08 | 381034001 | 0.793 ppm |
| 2018-06-11 | 387909001 | 0.771 ppm |
| 2018-06-11 | 387909001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2018-07-09 | 393048001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2018-07-09 | 393048001 | 0.807 ppm |
| 2018-08-13 | 400770001 | 0.754 ppm |
| 2018-08-13 | 400770001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2018-09-05 | 405404001 | 0.777 ppm |
| 2018-09-05 | 405404001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2018-10-09 | 413603001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2018-10-09 | 413603001 | 0.747 ppm |
| 2018-11-13 | 419875001 | 0.930 ppm |
| 2018-11-13 | 419875001 | 1.000 ppm |
| 2018-12-05 | 422858001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2018-12-05 | 422858001 | 0.843 ppm |
| 2019-01-08 | 427091001 | 0.785 ppm |
| 2019-01-08 | 427091001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2019-02-13 | 431420001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-02-13 | 431420001 | 0.908 ppm |
| 2019-03-12 | 435221001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2019-03-12 | 435221001 | 0.778 ppm |
| 2019-04-09 | 439807001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-04-09 | 439807001 | 0.840 ppm |
| 2019-05-08 | 445107001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-05-08 | 445107001 | 0.829 ppm |
| 2019-06-20 | 453261001 | 0.795 ppm |
| 2019-06-20 | 453261001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-07-10 | 457028001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-07-10 | 457028001 | 0.869 ppm |
| 2019-08-08 | 462578001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-08-08 | 462578001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-09-04 | 467876001 | 0.911 ppm |
| 2019-09-04 | 467876001 | 1.000 ppm |
| 2019-10-28 | 478809001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2019-10-28 | 478809001 | 0.909 ppm |
| 2019-11-13 | 481551001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-11-13 | 481551001 | 0.934 ppm |
| 2019-12-04 | 484579001 | 0.741 ppm |
| 2019-12-04 | 484579001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2020-01-08 | 488584001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2020-01-08 | 488584001 | 0.943 ppm |
| 2020-04-06 | 499733001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2020-04-06 | 499733001 | 0.927 ppm |
| 2020-05-06 | 503661001 | 0.892 ppm |
| 2020-05-06 | 503661001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2020-06-03 | 508018001 | 0.732 ppm |
| 2020-06-03 | 508018001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2020-07-07 | 513505001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2020-07-07 | 513505001 | 0.922 ppm |
| 2020-08-11 | 519630001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2020-08-11 | 519630001 | 0.923 ppm |
| 2020-08-17 | 1207722 | 0.280 ppm |
| 2020-09-02 | 523428001 | 0.694 ppm |
| 2020-09-02 | 523428001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2020-10-06 | 529882001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2020-10-06 | 529882001 | 0.897 ppm |
| 2020-11-12 | 536017001 | 0.870 ppm |
| 2020-11-12 | 536017001 | 0.901 ppm |
| 2020-12-02 | 538659001 | 0.770 ppm |
| 2020-12-02 | 538659001 | 0.814 ppm |
| 2021-01-06 | 542787001 | 0.660 ppm |
| 2021-01-06 | 542787001 | 0.677 ppm |
| 2021-02-10 | 547267001 | 0.701 ppm |
| 2021-02-10 | 547267001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2021-02-10 | 547267001 | 0.701 ppm |
| 2021-02-10 | 547267001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2021-03-08 | 550744001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2021-03-08 | 550744001 | 0.915 ppm |
| 2021-03-08 | 550744001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2021-03-08 | 550744001 | 0.915 ppm |
| 2021-04-07 | 555217001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2021-04-07 | 555217001 | 0.741 ppm |
| 2021-05-05 | 560384001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2021-05-05 | 560384001 | 0.936 ppm |
| 2021-06-09 | 566350001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2021-06-09 | 566350001 | 0.979 ppm |
| 2021-07-13 | 572365001 | 0.620 ppm |
| 2021-07-13 | 572365001 | 0.740 ppm |
| 2021-08-11 | 577908001 | 0.740 ppm |
| 2021-08-11 | 577908001 | 0.961 ppm |
| 2021-09-08 | 582558001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2021-09-08 | 582558001 | 0.933 ppm |
| 2021-10-12 | 589427001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2021-10-12 | 589427001 | 0.908 ppm |
| 2021-11-10 | 594210001 | 0.887 ppm |
| 2021-11-10 | 594210001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2021-12-07 | 597512001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2021-12-07 | 597512001 | 0.846 ppm |
| 2022-01-13 | 602041001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-01-13 | 602041001 | 0.830 ppm |
| 2022-02-08 | 605117001 | 0.799 ppm |
| 2022-02-08 | 605117001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-03-01 | 607625001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-03-01 | 607625001 | 0.878 ppm |
| 2022-04-12 | 613916001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-04-12 | 613916001 | 0.862 ppm |
| 2022-05-04 | 617816001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-05-04 | 617816001 | 0.835 ppm |
| 2022-06-07 | 623981001 | 0.355 ppm |
| 2022-06-07 | 623981001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-07-13 | 630894001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-07-13 | 630894001 | 0.872 ppm |
| 2022-08-03 | 634937001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-08-03 | 634937001 | 0.818 ppm |
| 2022-09-13 | 642502001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-09-13 | 642502001 | 0.804 ppm |
| 2022-10-05 | 647023001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-10-05 | 647023001 | 0.819 ppm |
| 2022-11-08 | 652526001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2022-11-08 | 652526001 | 0.836 ppm |
| 2022-12-07 | 656312001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2022-12-07 | 656312001 | 0.888 ppm |
| 2023-01-11 | 660477001 | 0.830 ppm |
| 2023-01-11 | 660477001 | 0.863 ppm |
| 2023-02-08 | 663921001 | 0.341 ppm |
| 2023-02-08 | 663921001 | 0.480 ppm |
| 2023-03-02 | 666617001 | 0.810 ppm |
| 2023-03-02 | 666617001 | 0.828 ppm |
| 2023-04-12 | 672985001 | 0.855 ppm |
| 2023-04-12 | 672985001 | 0.880 ppm |
| 2023-05-03 | 676681001 | 0.630 ppm |
| 2023-05-03 | 676681001 | 0.698 ppm |
| 2023-06-07 | 682681001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2023-06-07 | 682681001 | 0.807 ppm |
| 2023-06-14 | CB06548-01 | 0.440 ppm |
| 2023-07-11 | 688261001 | 0.610 ppm |
| 2023-07-11 | 688261001 | 0.795 ppm |
| 2023-08-09 | 694083001 | 0.610 ppm |
| 2023-08-09 | 694083001 | 0.823 ppm |
| 2023-09-06 | 698866001 | 0.771 ppm |
| 2023-09-06 | 698866001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2023-10-04 | 704623001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2023-10-04 | 704623001 | 0.785 ppm |
| 2023-11-07 | 709902001 | 0.785 ppm |
| 2023-11-07 | 709902001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2023-12-06 | 713718001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2023-12-06 | 713718001 | 0.792 ppm |