Fluoride
Abbotsford Waterworks
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 | 0.584 ppm | 27 | 27 | 0.190 ppm - 0.829 ppm |
| 2015 | 0.648 ppm | 24 | 24 | 0.380 ppm - 0.877 ppm |
| 2016 | 0.695 ppm | 24 | 24 | 0.620 ppm - 0.790 ppm |
| 2017 | 0.641 ppm | 27 | 27 | 0.210 ppm - 0.820 ppm |
| 2018 | 0.670 ppm | 24 | 24 | 0.538 ppm - 0.830 ppm |
| 2019 | 0.694 ppm | 24 | 24 | 0.491 ppm - 0.961 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2014-01-27 | 117590001 | 0.548 ppm |
| 2014-01-27 | 117590001 | 0.620 ppm |
| 2014-02-24 | 120763001 | 0.540 ppm |
| 2014-02-24 | 120763001 | 0.689 ppm |
| 2014-02-25 | 771876 | 0.650 ppm |
| 2014-03-18 | 124053001 | 0.650 ppm |
| 2014-03-18 | 124053001 | 0.689 ppm |
| 2014-04-16 | 128121001 | 0.639 ppm |
| 2014-04-16 | 128121001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2014-04-22 | 781761 | 0.200 ppm |
| 2014-05-19 | 133679001 | 0.650 ppm |
| 2014-05-19 | 133679001 | 0.668 ppm |
| 2014-06-23 | 140860001 | 0.571 ppm |
| 2014-06-23 | 140860001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2014-07-29 | 148228001 | 0.610 ppm |
| 2014-07-29 | 148228001 | 0.649 ppm |
| 2014-08-18 | 152010001 | 0.390 ppm |
| 2014-08-18 | 152010001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2014-09-22 | 159014001 | 0.472 ppm |
| 2014-09-22 | 159014001 | 0.650 ppm |
| 2014-09-29 | 822023 | 0.190 ppm |
| 2014-10-27 | 165675001 | 0.450 ppm |
| 2014-10-27 | 165675001 | 0.660 ppm |
| 2014-11-17 | 168833001 | 0.382 ppm |
| 2014-11-17 | 168833001 | 0.600 ppm |
| 2014-12-08 | 171690001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2014-12-08 | 171690001 | 0.829 ppm |
| 2015-01-26 | 177141001 | 0.557 ppm |
| 2015-01-26 | 177141001 | 0.690 ppm |
| 2015-02-09 | 178943001 | 0.560 ppm |
| 2015-02-09 | 178943001 | 0.626 ppm |
| 2015-03-10 | 182998001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2015-03-10 | 182998001 | 0.877 ppm |
| 2015-04-20 | 188884001 | 0.675 ppm |
| 2015-04-20 | 188884001 | 0.780 ppm |
| 2015-05-11 | 192765001 | 0.650 ppm |
| 2015-05-11 | 192765001 | 0.675 ppm |
| 2015-06-08 | 198700001 | 0.650 ppm |
| 2015-06-08 | 198700001 | 0.681 ppm |
| 2015-07-27 | 208044001 | 0.380 ppm |
| 2015-07-27 | 208044001 | 0.420 ppm |
| 2015-08-03 | 209413001 | 0.403 ppm |
| 2015-08-03 | 209413001 | 0.440 ppm |
| 2015-09-21 | 219117001 | 0.635 ppm |
| 2015-09-21 | 219117001 | 0.640 ppm |
| 2015-10-19 | 224605001 | 0.660 ppm |
| 2015-10-19 | 224605001 | 0.713 ppm |
| 2015-11-02 | 226740001 | 0.736 ppm |
| 2015-11-02 | 226740001 | 0.840 ppm |
| 2015-12-14 | 232696001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2015-12-14 | 232696001 | 0.753 ppm |
| 2016-01-25 | 237073001 | 0.770 ppm |
| 2016-01-25 | 237073001 | 0.778 ppm |
| 2016-02-08 | 238850001 | 0.750 ppm |
| 2016-02-08 | 238850001 | 0.790 ppm |
| 2016-03-14 | 244010001 | 0.690 ppm |
| 2016-03-14 | 244010001 | 0.770 ppm |
| 2016-04-12 | 248676001 | 0.709 ppm |
| 2016-04-12 | 248676001 | 0.760 ppm |
| 2016-05-02 | 251929001 | 0.711 ppm |
| 2016-05-02 | 251929001 | 0.720 ppm |
| 2016-06-28 | 263163001 | 0.690 ppm |
| 2016-06-28 | 263163001 | 0.691 ppm |
| 2016-07-25 | 268233001 | 0.660 ppm |
| 2016-07-25 | 268233001 | 0.668 ppm |
| 2016-08-22 | 273566001 | 0.640 ppm |
| 2016-08-22 | 273566001 | 0.658 ppm |
| 2016-09-26 | 280407001 | 0.620 ppm |
| 2016-09-26 | 280407001 | 0.640 ppm |
| 2016-10-24 | 285599001 | 0.630 ppm |
| 2016-10-24 | 285599001 | 0.643 ppm |
| 2016-11-07 | 287840001 | 0.656 ppm |
| 2016-11-07 | 287840001 | 0.740 ppm |
| 2016-12-12 | 292659001 | 0.629 ppm |
| 2016-12-12 | 292659001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2017-01-23 | 297317001 | 0.610 ppm |
| 2017-01-23 | 297317001 | 0.820 ppm |
| 2017-01-30 | 971518 | 0.210 ppm |
| 2017-02-06 | 298907001 | 0.657 ppm |
| 2017-02-06 | 298907001 | 0.660 ppm |
| 2017-02-21 | 974578 | 0.570 ppm |
| 2017-03-20 | 305244001 | 0.631 ppm |
| 2017-03-20 | 305244001 | 0.640 ppm |
| 2017-03-21 | 978777 | 0.720 ppm |
| 2017-04-17 | 310339001 | 0.630 ppm |
| 2017-04-17 | 310339001 | 0.663 ppm |
| 2017-05-15 | 315973001 | 0.610 ppm |
| 2017-05-15 | 315973001 | 0.680 ppm |
| 2017-06-12 | 321319001 | 0.410 ppm |
| 2017-06-12 | 321319001 | 0.628 ppm |
| 2017-07-24 | 330943001 | 0.640 ppm |
| 2017-07-24 | 330943001 | 0.704 ppm |
| 2017-08-14 | 335710001 | 0.692 ppm |
| 2017-08-14 | 335710001 | 0.720 ppm |
| 2017-09-18 | 343204001 | 0.676 ppm |
| 2017-09-18 | 343204001 | 0.690 ppm |
| 2017-10-23 | 350604001 | 0.640 ppm |
| 2017-10-23 | 350604001 | 0.684 ppm |
| 2017-11-06 | 352793001 | 0.684 ppm |
| 2017-11-06 | 352793001 | 0.700 ppm |
| 2017-12-11 | 358866001 | 0.656 ppm |
| 2017-12-11 | 358866001 | 0.690 ppm |
| 2018-01-23 | 364121001 | 0.568 ppm |
| 2018-01-23 | 364121001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2018-02-12 | 366684001 | 0.554 ppm |
| 2018-02-12 | 366684001 | 0.630 ppm |
| 2018-03-12 | 370819001 | 0.555 ppm |
| 2018-03-12 | 370819001 | 0.610 ppm |
| 2018-04-16 | 376585001 | 0.600 ppm |
| 2018-04-16 | 376585001 | 0.633 ppm |
| 2018-05-14 | 382150001 | 0.649 ppm |
| 2018-05-14 | 382150001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2018-06-18 | 389324001 | 0.611 ppm |
| 2018-06-18 | 389324001 | 0.660 ppm |
| 2018-07-16 | 394811001 | 0.780 ppm |
| 2018-07-16 | 394811001 | 0.826 ppm |
| 2018-08-20 | 402204001 | 0.814 ppm |
| 2018-08-20 | 402204001 | 0.830 ppm |
| 2018-09-17 | 408406001 | 0.730 ppm |
| 2018-09-17 | 408406001 | 0.747 ppm |
| 2018-10-15 | 414659001 | 0.733 ppm |
| 2018-10-15 | 414659001 | 0.760 ppm |
| 2018-11-19 | 420636001 | 0.620 ppm |
| 2018-11-19 | 420636001 | 0.652 ppm |
| 2018-12-10 | 423615001 | 0.538 ppm |
| 2018-12-10 | 423615001 | 0.640 ppm |
| 2019-01-14 | 427838001 | 0.658 ppm |
| 2019-01-14 | 427838001 | 0.680 ppm |
| 2019-02-25 | 432911001 | 0.586 ppm |
| 2019-02-25 | 432911001 | 0.630 ppm |
| 2019-03-25 | 437110001 | 0.622 ppm |
| 2019-03-25 | 437110001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2019-04-17 | 441387001 | 0.540 ppm |
| 2019-04-17 | 441387001 | 0.760 ppm |
| 2019-05-07 | 444776001 | 0.491 ppm |
| 2019-05-07 | 444776001 | 0.600 ppm |
| 2019-06-05 | 450210001 | 0.900 ppm |
| 2019-06-05 | 450210001 | 0.961 ppm |
| 2019-07-10 | 457027001 | 0.693 ppm |
| 2019-07-10 | 457027001 | 0.720 ppm |
| 2019-08-06 | 462196001 | 0.630 ppm |
| 2019-08-06 | 462196001 | 0.659 ppm |
| 2019-09-10 | 469394001 | 0.632 ppm |
| 2019-09-10 | 469394001 | 0.670 ppm |
| 2019-10-15 | 476638001 | 0.640 ppm |
| 2019-10-15 | 476638001 | 0.800 ppm |
| 2019-11-06 | 480328001 | 0.765 ppm |
| 2019-11-06 | 480328001 | 0.810 ppm |
| 2019-12-11 | 485824001 | 0.760 ppm |
| 2019-12-11 | 485824001 | 0.771 ppm |