While clean teeth are certainly important to prevent cavities and keep those pearly whites in the optimum state of good health, any dentist will tell you there's another important factor. Water is an imperative source of fluid to prevent dehydration. In most communities, the choice is between bottle water or tap water. It makes a difference because of the mineral fluoride.
MINERALS MATTER
Although food is an excellent source of many minerals, so is water, which contains the minerals leached from the ground during rainfall. One of the most important is fluoride, which is known to help prevent tooth decay. Scientists discovered this important quality when they noticed people who lived in areas where the soil was naturally high in fluoride had less tooth decay.
BOTTLE WATER
Water from a bottle is unquestionably better than sodas or other sugary drinks from the standpoint of oral health. However, during processing bottled water is often subject to reverse osmosis or distillation. Intended to take out substances that can affect the flavor of the water, both of these processes also remove any fluoride that is naturally present in the water.
TAP WATER
Although tap water is treated before use in most communities, it often contains fluoride or has small amounts of fluoride added during the treatment process. Home filters, however, may or may not remove fluoride, especially if the filtration process uses reverse osmosis or distillation.
BOTTOM LINE
Because fluoride is added to public tap water, drinking tap water is better for you regarding oral health. The American Dental Association supports fluoridation and endorses it as a safe and beneficial public health measure to prevent cavities in both children and adults. The American Academy of Pediatrics believes fluoride will prevent cavities and is safe and effective. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ranks water fluoridation as one of the top ten public health achievements of the 20th century.
