• reptar@lemmy.world
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      11 hours ago

      lead poisoning becomes evident pretty early though doesn’t it? (With respect to kids)

      I would think that the ratio of persistent exposure to unsafe level has got to be easily higher in cases like Flint than any fluoride-in-the-water usage. Just speculation on my part.

      What measures are taken to avoid screwing up the dosage, anyone know? Maybe predilute so that an oops requires multiple buckets instead of vials?

    • Hylactor@sopuli.xyz
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      2 days ago

      You just made me mad by helping me realize that the Trump bros are going to break water by removing fluoride long before they fix water by removing lead.

      • ryannathans@aussie.zone
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        2 days ago

        Are you sure fluoride doesn’t? It does accumulate in the soil, building up in crops. Considering fluoride exposure from all sources, many people are above upper safe limits, even from tea drinking alone

        I don’t think fluoride should be added to water as it just pollutes the environment, where 99.99% of water isn’t coming in contact with teeth

        • marcos@lemmy.world
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          2 days ago

          It doesn’t. This is high-school chemistry.

          Fluoride only “accumulates” up to the peak concentration of the environment (no further) on places where it is removed from contact with that environment.

          You can only accumulate fluoride in the soil if you keep adding it and there is almost no rain to wash it away.

          • ryannathans@aussie.zone
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            1 day ago

            Like how crops are irrigated with town water, and in many areas with lowering rainfall? Accumulates in fruit, vegetables, leaves too

            • marcos@lemmy.world
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              1 day ago

              Yes, irrigation with the minimum possible amount of water is known to destroy land for millennia at this point. But sodium will be a problem way before you notice any change in fluoride.

    • Ferrous@lemmy.ml
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      2 days ago

      Yup, same with PFAS and forever chemicals. Maybe I’m ignorant because I’m not a doctor, but I don’t know if this line of thinking holds water - pun not intended.