I know. It sounds crazy. And I'm the only one writing about it. But if it was already a widely-accepted fact that fluoride causes acne, I wouldn't have bothered to write the book. There is a good reason you haven't heard about fluoride and acne before—it's because the experts haven't figured it out yet. A review of the scientific literature on acne shows dermatologists are embarrassingly disinterested in studying diet. (source) Their research focuses overwhelmingly on drugs and other treatments that can be administered at a doctor's office, and preferably patented and/or charged to insurance. A few prominent scientists have uncovered the link between fluoride and acne over the years, but their research was neglected and sometimes actively suppressed because it undermines support for government fluoridation programs. (For an example of the latter, see Struggle with Titans by George Waldbott, M.D.)

That's what I used to think, too. I drank artificially fluoridated tap water for most of my life without questioning the health authorities who said it was good for me. When I realized the effect it was having on my skin, I began to look into the issue more closely. Proponents of fluoridation argue that fluoride is a naturally occurring element in some water supplies, but so is arsenic. They've been known to describe it as an "essential mineral nutrient," but there are no known side effects from restricting fluoride intake (the definition of an essential nutrient). The reason fluoride is seen as beneficial is because the science has been corrupted by powerful organizations with a deep financial interest in maintaining the myth that public water fluoridation is a safe and effective way to decrease dental decay in a target population. These organizations include corporate polluters (did you know your local water supplier likely buys their fluoride from a phosphate fertilizer plant in Florida?), the sugar industry, and the dental lobby.

Believe me, I would rather NOT be spending all this energy raising awareness one person at a time of a problem that could easily be fixed for everyone simply by ending the obsolete practice of artificial water fluoridation. But here we are. My background is in the field of intelligence analysis. I majored in Science and Technology at Georgetown University where I graduated with honors before spending five years in the military as an intelligence officer, ten years as an analyst with the FBI, and one year as a Fulbright scholar in Scotland. It was my time in Scotland that finally led me to realize why my skin always clears up when I live in non-fluoridated countries. I've been writing about fluoride and acne for a decade now. If you think I'm confused and the cause of my chronic acne was really dairy products or sugar or histamines or hormones, you should read the book. If you think maybe my acne was caused by fluoride but yours definitely is not, you should read the book. If you think you are fine consuming fluoride because you don't have acne, you should read the book.

Everyone responds to fluoride differently, depending on your unique biochemical makeup and your history of exposure. For most people, it manifests predominantly around the mouth, chin, and jawline. When my acne was at its worst, I had breakouts all over my face, down the front and back of my neck, on my chest and back, and even in my ears. Here are photographs of my skin at various stages as I healed my acne by avoiding fluoride.

The best way to figure out if your acne is caused by fluoride is to begin limiting your exposure to fluoride and see if your skin improves. Here are some other signs your acne is caused by fluoride.

It would be nice if researchers started studying fluoride sensitivity so we could have a more concrete answer to this question, but I suspect the biggest reason some people are more sensitive than others is because of variations in historical exposure. Fluoride is known to bioaccumulate in bone tissue. The National Research Council estimates the half life of fluoride in bone is twenty years. (source) That means half the fluoride sequesterd in your bones from fluoride you consume today will still be there twenty years from now. My dentist prescribed fluoride pills for me as a child because our water supply was not fluoridated. I started experiencing insomnia and chronic nose bleeds but no one put these symptoms together with my increased fluoride exposure. I also developed dental fluorosis, a discoloring of the tooth enamel caused by fluoride toxicity. The rates of dental fluorosis have been steadily and dramatically increasing since I was child (along with the rates of adult acne). (source) Some people might be genetically predisposed to processing fluoride differently, but I believe the timing and magnitude of past exposure is the biggest determining factor in fluoride sensitivity.

We won't know the answer to this question until researchers start taking the adverse effects of fluoride seriously, but based on the response to my book so far, acne caused by fluoride is not uncommon. When I started writing about fluoride and acne ten years ago, I thought it was a rare condition. I posted a free .pdf guide on the internet for anyone who might suffer from the same bizarre "allergy" as me. I was shocked by the response. How was it possible I was hearing from so many people who were also able to heal their acne by avoiding fluoride? When a woman sent me an email with the words "your book saved my life," I knew I needed to bring this information to a wider audience. I self-published a book on Amazon and again, without any promotion, the reviews steadily rolled in. "I'm flabbergasted. I've had acne for the last 30 years..." "I’m not exaggerating when I say this book changed my life. My adult-onset severe acne was just awful and I was embarrassed to leave the house..." "Thank you for saving my life." To read more detailed testimonials, visit our testimonials page. Or click here to submit a testimonial of your own.

Fluoride sneaks into our modern lives in ways you would never expect. Eliminating excess fluoride exposure can be a challenge, but here are two simple steps you can take right away to see if your acne is caused by fluoride. switch to a fluoride-free toothpaste find a reliable source of fluoride-free drinking water For some people, these two steps alone are enough to get rid of acne for good. Others might need to root out less obvious sources of fluoride, such as fluoride-based pesticides or fluorinated pharmaceuticals. Subscribe to my newsletter for a free cheat sheet on the most common sources of fluoride exposure.

To find out if your water is fluoridated, contact your local water provider as listed on your utility bill. Or you can look for their annual water quality report online by searching "water quality report" along with the name of your town. For more information, see my page on finding fluoride-free water.

Proponents of fluoridation often point out that people can filter fluoride from their water if they don't want to drink it. But fluoride filters are expensive to install and maintain. Filtering fluoride from shower water is even more difficult since shower filters do not remove fluoride. And bath water? It's easier to give up bathing. If you want a quick answer, a steam distiller or reverse osmosis system with an added fluoride filter are the most reliable ways to filter fluoride from drinking water. Brita and other common pitcher filters are not effective at removing fluoride (even ones that make it sound like they are). For a more detailed answer, see my page on finding fluoride-free water.

Avoiding fluoride would be so much easier if our government didn't recommend adding it to public water supplies. To join me in demanding the U.S. government stops promoting fluoridation, sign my petition to end fluoridation at Change.org. You can also join Gallico Studios on Patreon to support my podcast and other multimedia efforts devoted to exposing the pollution story behind artificial water fluoridation.