NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A bill that would ban fluoride from being added to public water systems in Tennessee is back.
Right now, state law allows local municipalities to choose whether to fluoridate its water. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Joey Hensley (R-Hohenwald), argues the public should be able to choose how much — if any — fluoride they get. He said his legislation is about informed consent.
“The government should not be medicating the public through the tap,” Hensley said.
The bill was first debated during a Senate Energy, Agriculture, and Natural Resources Committee Wednesday, where water plant operator Clark Clover told lawmakers fluoride is one of the most problematic issues he deals with. In addition to causing damage to the system’s pipes, if operators accidentally add too much fluoride to the water, there’s nothing they can do to reverse it.
“Trust me, I’ve been in a lot of utilities, and this happens more frequently than you think,” Clover said. “A pump will hang, water will be treated or overtreated, and a log book is only as honest as the operator who is writing those numbers in.”
Dr. Jack Kall, a dentist, called fluoride a “known neurotoxin.”
“Fluoride is not an essential nutrient. The body does not need it for any bodily functions. In fact, it’s an enzyme inhibitor and adversely affects the function of our mitochondria, where energy is made in our cells,” Kall testified. “Even worse, the fluoride added to the water is not even pharmaceutical grade. It is a waste product from the fertilizer industry contaminated with lead and radon.”
While those against fluoridated water cited studies showing lower IQ levels in children exposed to fluoride and the updated 2024-2025 Cochrane Report which found fluoride only reduced tooth decay by 3 to 4%, other dentists argued those studies were flawed.
“The studies relied on information that was based on high concentrations of fluoride and not what’s recommended in the U.S. — which is below 1.5 — and we now recommend 0.7,” Dr. Leon Stanislav, a retired dentist, said. “Those studies did not incorporate valid U.S. citizens, and also recommendations in terms of the concentrations in the U.S.”
Stanislav testified extensive evidence shows fluoride, at the recommended levels, is a safe and cost-effective way of reducing cavities by as much as 25%.
“The lack of good oral health creates loss of time from work and school, low self-esteem for societal integration and the most basic human need — eating,” Stanislav said. “I can find many examples of mortality from dental abscesses. You find me one mortality from drinking optimally fluoridated water.”
Hensley asked that the vote on the bill be delayed. The House version was also debated in its first committee Wednesday.
Original article online at: https://www.wkrn.com/news/tennessee-politics/proposed-fluoride-public-water-system-ban-2026/