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Comment by OutOfHere | Hacker News Reader

I started using reverse osmosis filtration of tap water at home. The issue is that it removes all minerals, and its pH cartridge wears thin in a mere two to three months. The missing minerals have to be compensated for via increased supplementation. Also, there is no fluoride in it anymore for your teeth, so only your toothpaste can save your teeth.

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I seem to remember reading that fluoride in drinking water has no real effect on teeth, vs fluoride in toothpaste if you actually leave it in contact with your teeth for several minutes like you're supposed to.

No, you're not supposed to leave it in contact with your teeth for any period of time. If you do, you will start swallowing it. Swallowing it will cause stomach and cause other problems too.

The reason is that sodium fluoride which exists in toothpastes is associated with testicular and hormonal dysfunction in males - refer to PMID 30165274.

I have been using RO water from Prismo water in NorthBay. They have installed RO machines at various places and it costs about 2.5 bucks to fill 5 gallon jug

Is that a 5 gallon plastic jug?

You can get a countertop RO unit for home use that's so easy to use. It's also utterly cheaper to use than any commercially purchased RO water. Just remember to clean the pitcher and your water bottle every week from their insides.

Also, if you buy the RO water in plastic, that's risking avoidable microplastics. I use glass and steel bottles.

What about the membrane inside that’s possibly made of chemical treated stuff?

> "Also, there is no fluoride in it anymore"

Good. There is absolutely no reason this should be in water.

I see it from both sides. On one hand, I am no longer risking poisoning my brain with excessive fluoride.

On the other hand, I now developed sensitivity in a tooth that is going to be a challenge to fix. This is despite me using fluoride toothpaste twice daily. Acidic foods can do more damage to teeth when there isn't fluoride in the drinking water. As a result, the saliva also lacks fluoride, and cannot protect the teeth so well anymore. It was my mistake for consuming an acidic food. I now have to see if expensive nano-hydroxyapatite toothpaste can fix the sensitivity.

Tooth aches in my experience are often unrelated to the tooth but instead due to sinus pressure (an infection, allergies, etc).

The absence of fluoride initially causes severe dental sensitivity due to acidic foods, which is the concern here. If you have always been using fluoride toothpaste and drinking fluoride-containing tap water, you will not understand.

Toothaches are indeed also caused by headaches, oral infections, and sinus infections/allergies/irritation. Sometimes it's sinus related and sometimes it isn't. These have nothing to do with tooth sensitivity.

Flouride. does. not. need. to. be. in. the. water. supply.... period. No "argument" you could make is of any credibility.

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