Water fluoridation in the UK

Fluoride occurs naturally in water, but some areas of the UK (England only) have fluoride added by the water companies upon request from local health authorities. We’ll cover why they fluoridate drinking water later.

Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland do not currently add fluoride to drinking water, but naturally occurring fluoride may be present.

Here is a water fluoridation UK map so you can quickly see if fluoride has been added to your drinking water. 

This map was sourced from GOV.UK. 

Understanding water fluoridation

The main reason that fluoride is added to water is to prevent rising tooth decay and improve oral health in the general population.

However, fluoridation of water pales in comparison to the availability of toothpaste containing fluoride, which is available across the UK. Fluoride in varying levels is added to toothpaste as a preventative measure against oral disease and is the most common delivery system of fluoride to the UK population.

Benefits of fluoridated water

The addition of fluoride in water is all about intervention.

Food sugars + mouth plaque bacteria = acid, which leads to cavities. Dental cavities can ultimately end in tooth decay and extraction, unless something is done about it.

Tooth decay is avoidable.

Extracting decayed teeth from children is not something to celebrate. According to the British Dental Association (BDA) 'tooth decay is still going unchallenged as the number one reason for hospital admissions among young children'.

And for the financial year 2021-2022 there were 26,741 episodes of tooth extractions in NHS hospitals for 0-19 year olds, with the primary reason being tooth decay. 

This obviously cost the NHS, and you the taxpayer a lot of money. 

This is why some parts of the UK fluoridate water, and why fluoride toothpaste is available. So that there are consistent levels of fluoride in the mouth to make teeth enamel more resistant to decay.

Research findings on water fluoridation

Despite the horror stories that you’ll read on the world-wide web, water fluoridation is a safe and effective public health intervention that can improve dental health and help to narrow dental health inequalities across England.

Of course, that doesn’t mean you have to agree with it. You can remove fluoride from tap water and we’ll guide you through the most effective ways to do this with one of our fluoride water filters.  

The Water Quality Regulations 2016 allow for up to 1.5 mg/l of fluoride in the public water supply. If water companies in England fluoridate water, they do so up to 1 mg/l.

Visiting your water suppliers website will give you the most up to date information of the fluoride levels in your water supply. Remember that fluoride is naturally present in water, and the fluoride UK water map above tells you if you’re in an area that is artificially fluoridated.

Fluoride in drinking water

We’ve already established that England is the only country in the UK that adds fluoride to drinking water to improve dental health.

And only 10% of England’s population has fluoride added to drinking water, which is about 6 million people.

The most extensively fluoridated areas in England are the West Midlands and the Northeast of England. Historically, these are areas that have experienced high levels of deprivation.

Checking fluoride levels in your area

To quickly check if you have fluoride added to your drinking water supply, look at our UK fluoride water map above.

Then for more detailed information about the fluoride levels in your drinking water, look at your water suppliers website. They may have a postcode checker, so it’s worthwhile looking for that. This will give you the level of fluoride present in your household water. It will also give you information on permissible levels.

Effective methods for removing fluoride from water

If your water is currently being fluoridated to elevate the naturally occurring levels, you may or may not agree with it.

That’s entirely up to you and if you disagree with the fluoridation of water, you can do something about it.

Firstly, you can stop buying toothpaste that has fluoride added to it. The toothpaste tube will always list fluoride if it’s been added.

Secondly, you can reduce the amount of fluoride in your household water with one of our specialist fluoride water filters. Our fluoride filters will either treat your drinking water only, kitchen cold tap, or whole house.  

It really is very easy, and we will do what we can to help you.

So, check the map, check your water suppliers website, do some research, decide what’s best for you and your family, and if that’s to minimise exposure to fluoride the next logical step is to call us on 01352 838 281 or pop a message on our helpdesk.

Key takeaways from Fountain Filters

When it comes to water filtration there is always a lot of information to sift through and try to understand.

But for the purposes of fluoride in water, here are our top three takeaways.

• Look at the UK water fluoridation map above to determine if your water is artificially fluoridated. Remember that fluoride occurs naturally in water, so getting one of those home test kits for fluoride will almost always throw up a positive reading for fluoride. It’s better to visit your water suppliers website.
• Work out whether you want fluoride in your water or not.
• If you don’t want fluoride in your drinking water, then contact Fountain Filters and do something about it.

FAQ about fluoride in water

Does boiling water remove fluoride?

NO. Boiling water does not remove fluoride. If you boil water containing fluoride, it would leave the same amount of fluoride in a smaller amount of water, due to evaporation during the boiling process.

Why do water companies use fluoride?

Fluoride is added to some public water supplies in England to reduce oral health inequalities and tooth decay rates, particularly in children aged 0-19 years old.

Does bottled water have fluoride in it?

Bottled water may contain fluoride. It's important to look at the label on the brand you wish to purchase.