The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will reconsider the health impacts of fluoride in drinking water — taking what could be an initial step toward new national limits or a ban on the substance.
An EPA press release said Monday that the agency would “expeditiously review new scientific information on potential health risks of fluoride in drinking water” and that doing so will inform any potential moves to restrict fluoride under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
“Without prejudging any outcomes, when this evaluation is completed, we will have an updated foundational scientific evaluation that will inform the agency's future steps to meet statutory obligations under the Safe Drinking Water Act,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a written statement.
In September, a judge ruled that the EPA must “engage with a regulatory response” to fluoride, though it did not dictate what that response should be.
It’s not immediately clear whether Zeldin’s announcement differs from work the agency would have otherwise done in response to that order.
But the administrator credited advocacy from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for bringing about the review.
“Secretary Kennedy has long been at the forefront of this issue. His advocacy was instrumental in our decision to review fluoride exposure risks and we are committed to working alongside him, utilizing sound science as we advance our mission of protecting human health and the environment,” Zeldin said.
Fluoride is intentionally added to drinking water to prevent tooth decay. About 200 million Americans drink water with added fluoride.
While it’s clear that fluoride is good for teeth, some recent studies have linked it to lower IQ. Notably, the Department of Health and Human Services’s (HHS) National Toxicology Program found in August that higher levels of fluoride exposure are linked to lower IQs in children.
However, health associations including the the American Academy of Pediatrics stood by recommendations in favor of adding fluoride to water and toothpaste even in light of the finding.
The pediatrics organization said that among other issues, the toxicology program left out studies that did not find a link between fluoride and IQ. And earlier in 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement that “expert panels … have not found convincing scientific evidence linking community water fluoridation with any potential adverse health effect,” including low intelligence.
The attention paid to potential impacts of fluoride has grown in recent years amid the rise of Kennedy’s "Make America Healthy Again" movement.
In the EPA's announcement, the agency cited the August 2024 toxicology program finding in its decision to revisit the health impacts of fluoride, which were previously assessed by the EPA in July 2024. EPA says its review will be conducted “in coordination” with Kennedy and HHS.
