Inorganic Fluorides - PSL1

4.0 Recommendations

In view of the small difference between the estimated daily intake of inorganic fluorides and the level at which adverse effects on the skeleton are anticipated, it is recommended that exposure of the population of Canada to inorganic fluorides continue to be closely monitored. Acquisition and evaluation of additional data in the following areas would also permit a more complete assessment:

1. data from an epidemiological case-control study in the United States, in which the occurrence of osteosarcoma in relation to exposure to fluoride and the levels of this substance in bone is currently being assessed;
2. additional information from analytical epidemiological studies in which effects upon reproduction and development, skeletal fracture, and the development of skeletal fluorosis is assessed in relation to total exposure to inorganic fluoride;
3. the extent of inorganic fluoride releases into aquatic environments from the fluoridation of municipal drinking water and the effects on aquatic life;
4. the relationship between the levels of fluoride in sediment and toxicity to benthic organisms (in areas of Canada where high levels of inorganic fluorides in sediments are known or expected to occur); and
5. the relationship between levels of gaseous inorganic fluorides (especially sulphur hexafluoride) and global climate change potential.