... One of the major objectives of our research group is the production of geochemical maps showing the distribution of elements or important chemical species in the surface and groundwater of Sri Lanka. A geochemical data bank is now being prepared with the assistance of the Water Supply and Drainage Board and the Water Resources Board of Sri Lanka. For example, in a preliminary survey carried out on the relationship between fluoride ions in drinking water and the incidence of dental diseases,
It has been well established that ingestion of iodides or the painting of the pharynx with iodine will exacerbate dermatitis herpetiformis [1]; it is not well recognized that fluorides may do so. I report a patient with dermatitis herpetifonnis whose disease was apparently aggravated by application of fluoride to his teeth.
Case report. An 83-year-old man had had the onset of typical dermatitis herpetiformis at the age of 75. The disease had been satisfactorily controlled for several years by a
The main histolological change induced by fluoride is the increase of osteoid volume… This increase in osteoid parameters was observed in our study already at fluoride concentrations above 1.5 ppm. . . . Fluoridation of drinking water up to 1.2 ppm apparently does not pose a potential risk to bone provided the renal function is normal. . . . We should, however, recognize that it is difficult to give a strict value for a safe fluoride concentration in drinking water, because individual suscep
