User:Mr. Ibrahem/Fluoride therapy

Fluoride therapy is the use of fluoride for medical purposes. Fluoride supplements are recommended to prevent tooth decay in children older than six months in areas where the drinking water is low in fluoride. It is typically used as a liquid, pill, or paste by mouth. Where public water supplies are fluoridated further fluoride by mouth is typically not needed. Fluoride has also been used to treat a number of bone diseases.

Normal doses may occasionally result in white marks on the teeth. Excessive doses can result in brown or yellow coloring of the teeth. Fluoride therapy typically uses the sodium fluoride form, though stannous fluoride may also be used. Fluoride appears to decrease breakdown by acids, increase remineralisation, and decrease the activity of bacteria. It is believed to work mostly through direct contact with the teeth after they have emerged.

Fluoride came into use to prevent tooth decay in the 1940s. Fluoride, as sodium fluoride, is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. In the United Kingdom a typical month supply costs the NHS about GB£0.36. It is also not very expensive in the United States. In 2016, sodium fluoride was the 215th most prescribed medication in the United States, with more than two million prescriptions.