How to Remove Fluoride from Water Naturally?!

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Small amounts of fluoride can be beneficial to your health – think teeth enamel.

However, it can be difficult to control how much fluoride gets into your body if you’re not paying attention. If you live in an area where fluoride is added to municipal water, you can easily consume more than is ideal if your diet is already rich in fluoride.

It’s important to consider filtering or purifying your water in this case.

This article explains how to remove fluoride from water naturally.

Key Takeaways

Here is how to remove fluoride from water naturally:

  • A few studies claim that holy basil and Japanese camellia may be used for reducing about half of the fluoride in water.
  • Water distillation – This is the most effective natural approach to removing fluoride in water (more than 99.9% reduction).
  • Reverse osmosis – Some RO systems can remove more than 99% lead.
  • Activated alumina filter media – AA filters bind fluoride ions to their surface.
  • Bone char – Bone char traps fluoride ions in its surface.

How to Remove Fluoride from Water Naturally

Removing fluoride from water can be done in several ways. If you don’t want to use advanced water filters, there are several natural approaches available, too.

Can Water Purification Get Rid of Fluoride?

Water purification can remove various contaminants from your water supply. This also includes fluoride – but only in cases where you use a filter specifically designed for that purpose. Not all water filters on the market can deal with fluoride, as it can only be removed through specific filtration methods.

Distillation

Water distillation is by far the best natural approach to removing fluoride from your water. It can be done with simple household materials & supplies and costs practically nothing, other than the energy used for heating the water. However, it’s also limited in capacity and is not a suitable approach for continuous filtration.

Reverse Osmosis

Reverse osmosis is another natural process that can deal with fluoride very well. It involves forcing water through a semipermeable membrane using high pressure.

The membrane rejects almost everything except water molecules, resulting in clean, fresh water that’s free of most contaminants. Reverse osmosis systems are also a good solution for ongoing filtration and are available for household use.

Under Sink Reverse Osmosis System

Activated Alumina Filter Media

Activated alumina is a well-established method for treating water and removing fluoride from it. While it requires some specific conditions for optimal effect – mainly a water pH level of 5-6 – it’s one of the best approaches available if you don’t want to use distillation or reverse osmosis.

Bone Char

Another type of filter medium that can specifically target fluoride, bone char carbon filtration is highly effective. It’s probably the most common type of filter used for treating water for fluoride, and works very effectively while maintaining a reasonable price.

Holy Basil and Other Plants

There exist a couple of studies showcasing that holy basil and other plants such as Japanese camellia may be used for reducing fluoride from water naturally. However, more research is needed in order to confirm these findings. Also, some studies suggested the opposite.

Still, if you want to give this a try, you can add basil leaves or the stem into boiling water. According to research, you might be able to remove about half of the fluoride content in your water this way.

What Will Not Remove Fluoride

Boiling water is often used as a basic water purification method, but it’s completely ineffective when it comes to fluoride. It can actually make the situation worse, as some of the water will boil off and the concentration of fluoride will therefore increase.

You also won’t accomplish anything with a regular water filter. Unless you use one of the filtration/purification methods listed above, you will not be able to remove fluoride from your water by simply running it through a filter.

That’s why you shouldn’t rely on your filter pitcher to accomplish the task, unless it’s specifically designed for treating fluoride. If you’re in the market for a filter that can remove fluoride from your water, limit your search to approved filtration methods.

Other natural ways that won’t remove fluoride from water include:

Other Ways to Limit Your Fluoride Exposure

Filtering fluoride out of your water is not the only way to limit your overall daily intake.

Change Your Diet

You can consider a change in your diet. Eating less processed food, as well as avoiding fruits and vegetables that have been treated with pesticides, is a good starting point. This can increase your grocery bills, depending on your current habits, but if you want to limit your consumption of fluoride as much as possible, those are necessary steps.

Change Your Toothpaste

Consider switching to a non-fluoride variant of your toothpaste, if one is available (check in with your dentist first). The market is a bit limited in this regard, but there is still some variety of toothpastes without fluoride.

fluoridated toothpaste

Drink Less Tea

Tea contains high amounts of fluoride as its leaves naturally absorb and retain it. If you drink a lot of tea – especially in combination with a diet that falls under the above description – try cutting down on it.

Look Into Your Medications

If you’re on any medication that contains fluoride, ask your doctor if there are any alternatives that don’t have it. This can be a difficult situation and you might not have much room for making any improvements here, so you might want to focus on the other points instead.

How Does Fluoride Enter Our Water Supplies?

Fluoride is added to municipal water to help maintain the dental health of citizens, mainly by reducing the incidence of tooth decay. However, this point has been the subject of arguments in recent years, as statistics don’t indicate any notable improvement in areas where fluoride is added to the water supply compared to other places.

Sometimes, water also passes through rocks and soils that contain natural fluoride. They can deposit small amounts of it in the water. This means that you’re not completely guaranteed to avoid fluoride in your water even if you use your own well instead of drinking municipal water. In this case, special filtration may be required.

Should You Even Remove the Fluoride from Your Water?

While excessive consumption of fluoride has been linked to some health problems, it can actually be beneficial in small amounts. The important thing is to keep an eye on your intake and to ensure that you don’t consume too much of it on a regular basis.

In general, you should only care about this if your lifestyle already predisposes you to heavy fluoride intake. Dietary preferences play a major role in this, as does your choice of toothpaste and medication. Unless you’re getting a lot of fluoride from those sources, you probably don’t need to care about it that much.

Are There Any Health Risks Associated with Fluoride Consumption?

Despite its usefulness in small quantities, fluoride has been linked to a number of health problems, especially in children.

Dental Fluorosis

Dental fluorosis is a condition in which your teeth become visibly discolored. While it’s not physically harmful, it can have a negative aesthetic impact.

woman mouth and teeth

Skeletal Fluorosis

Skeletal fluorosis is a much more serious condition in which your bones and joints become progressively weaker. People suffering from this condition are at an increased risk of fractures and joint problems.

Hyperparathyroidism

Hyperparathyroidism causes your parathyroid gland to secrete hormones at an increased rate. This causes problems throughout your body, mainly in your bones and joints. Your bones lose their calcium over time, while its concentration in your blood increases. Similar to skeletal fluorosis, this condition can make your bones and joints weaker and more prone to damage.

Cognitive Problems

Children’s brains have been shown to be negatively affected by heavy consumption of fluoride. Studies point towards reduced cognitive abilities which persist through adulthood, leading to a decrease in overall intelligence.

Other Issues

There are other, smaller issues that can be caused by fluoride as well. It can lead to a number of skin problems, as well as cardiovascular issues. It can also negatively affect the reproductive system in people of all ages.

If you have any thoughts about the question, how to remove fluoride from drinking water naturally, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below!

About the Author Gene Fitzgerald

Gene Fitzgerald is one of the founders of BOS and currently head of content creation. She has 8+ years of experience as a water treatment specialist under her belt making her our senior scientist. Outside of BOS, Gene loves reading books on philosophy & social issues, making music, and hiking.
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