• Prenatal fluoride exposure is linked to lower IQ, behavioral issues, and neurodevelopmental problems in children, raising safety concerns.
• A 2024 federal court ruling declared fluoridated water at 0.7 mg/L an “unreasonable risk” to health and the environment.
• Recent studies, including a JAMA Pediatrics review, show strong evidence of fluoride’s harmful effects on brain development in children.
• Communities like Tavares, Florida, are ending fluoridation programs amid growing scientific and public pressure.
• Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of fluoridation, may push for federal policy changes as Health and Human Services Secretary.

For decades, fluoride has been added to public drinking water systems across the United States to prevent tooth decay. But a growing body of scientific evidence now suggests that this common practice may be harming the very people it was meant to protect — pregnant women and their children. Recent studies have linked prenatal fluoride exposure to lower IQ, behavioral problems, and neurodevelopmental issues in children, raising urgent questions about the safety of fluoridated water.

In a landmark federal court ruling in September 2024, U.S. District Judge Edward Chen declared that fluoridated water at the current standard of 0.7 milligrams per liter (mg/L) poses an “unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment.” The decision came after years of litigation and mounting evidence from scientific studies, including a May 2024 study that found prenatal fluoride exposure was associated with a range of health problems in children.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the newly appointed Secretary of Health and Human Services, has long been a vocal critic of water fluoridation. With his new role, advocates hope he will take action to address these risks.

The science behind the risks

The evidence against fluoride is compelling. A January 2025 study published in JAMA Pediatrics reviewed 74 studies and found a significant inverse relationship between fluoride exposure and IQ in 64 of them. Another study, led by researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and published in JAMA Network Open in May 2024, analyzed 229 mother-child pairs and found that higher fluoride levels during pregnancy were associated with nearly double the risk of neurobehavioral problems in children by age three.

“Women with higher fluoride exposure levels in their bodies during pregnancy tended to rate their 3-year-old children higher on overall neurobehavioral problems and internalizing symptoms, including emotional reactivity, anxiety, and somatic complaints,” said Tracy Bastain, PhD, senior author of the USC study.

Ashley Malin, PhD, a lead researcher on the study, emphasized that even low levels of fluoride — typical in fluoridated regions — pose risks. “There are no known benefits to the fetus from ingesting fluoride,” Malin said. “And yet now we have several studies conducted in North America suggesting that there may be a pretty significant risk to the developing brain during that time.”

A growing movement to end fluoridation

The court ruling and recent studies have reignited calls to end water fluoridation. During the trial, plaintiffs’ attorney Michael Connett argued that the levels of fluoride added to drinking water are “far too close to the levels that we know can cause neurotoxic effects.”

Some communities are already taking action. In December 2024, the city of Tavares, Florida, voted to end its water fluoridation program after hearing testimony from researchers like Malin, who cited a 2020 study showing that infants exposed to fluoride in formula could experience a nine-point drop in IQ for every 0.5 mg/L increase in fluoride levels.

World-renowned scientists, including Dr. Philippe Grandjean, who helped set safety standards for mercury, have also weighed in. “I wrote a book on this called Only One Chance because you only have one chance to develop your brain,” Grandjean testified. “If something goes wrong, you don’t have a chance later on to remodel the brain.”

What’s next for fluoride policy?

With Robert F. Kennedy Jr. now leading the Department of Health and Human Services, advocates are hopeful that the federal government will take decisive action. Kennedy has been a longtime critic of water fluoridation, calling it a public health risk.

In the meantime, researchers recommend that pregnant women take precautions. “Even some tabletop pitcher filters do a pretty good job of filtering fluoride,” the researchers said.

From lower IQ scores to behavioral problems, the risks to children and pregnant women are too significant to overlook. With future generations already facing challenges from the effects of cell phones and social media on mental acuity, the last thing they need is another obstacle to their cognitive development. Will the U.S. finally end the decades-long practice of adding fluoride to public drinking water? For the sake of future generations, the answer can’t come soon enough.

Sources for this article include:

ChildrensHealthDefense.org

Keck.USC.edu

NYPost.com