Family Talk: Make Sure You Drink Water?!

The next time you tell your kids that they need to drink more water, take a long hard look at what you're really giving them.

On Tuesday, May 15, Councilman Peter Vallone D-Astoria will hold a rally at City Hall, to protest the act of adding fluoride in New York City’s drinking water, our drinking water.

Now, if you're like me, you might be thinking to yourself, 'I don't drink tap water, nor do my kids.' I too buy bottled water, and am well aware that many households are equipped with filtration devices to weed out all those undesirables that may be, or in this case actually are, flowing through the tap.

But in all honesty, the water that I use to cook with, clean my fruits and vegetables with, wash my dishes with, comes straight from NYC. And I never questioned what was in there, although my subconscience knew enough to tell me not to drink it directly.

To the matter at hand—fluoride. What's the big deal, right? It's good for your teeth, isn't it? Well, I was dismayed when I read many tidbits of information from a number of websites surrounding the contaminants found in fluoride and their possible effects on our kids.

For example, in a letter to Florida's Department of Health from NSF International, the findings of tests done showed that the most common contaminant found in fluoride is arsenic. Definitely not something you would knowingly give to your child to ingest, or for youself for that matter.

Another little factoid, from the Fluoridation Action Network, is that studies show that high levels of fluoride may be directly linked to lowered IQs in children.

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Vallone has a proposed bill, which seeks to end New York City adding fluoride to our water supply. His motto, "If in doubt, keep it out" resonates with me, not only for the concern I have for my children's health and well-being, but for my entire family's, including myself.

 As Vallone so poignantly points out on his website "while all poisons have 'safe' levels, common sense dictates it is impossible to monitor fluoride intake in individuals when it is in almost everything we eat and drink." I would take this a step further and say that no levels of poison should be considered safe for human consumption, especially when it comes to my kids.