fluoride
Meaning of fluoride: Fluoride is a mineral that strengthens tooth enamel and helps prevent decay, delivered through water, toothpaste, and dental treatments.
Definition of fluoride
Fluoride is a form of the element fluorine that occurs naturally in some water sources and is added to others specifically to help prevent tooth decay. Fluoride works by strengthening the mineral structure of tooth enamel, making it more resistant to the acid produced by bacteria that naturally live in the mouth.
Beyond drinking water, fluoride is delivered through toothpaste, mouth rinses, and professionally applied gels or varnishes, and its protective effect depends partly on regular, low-level exposure to the surface of the teeth over time rather than a single application. Fluoride can also be absorbed and incorporated into developing teeth before they emerge.
Because fluoride's benefit depends on an appropriate level of exposure, both inadequate fluoride and excessive fluoride intake during tooth development can affect dental health, the latter potentially causing cosmetic changes in enamel appearance known as fluorosis.
Used in a sentence
The dentist applied a fluoride varnish to help protect the child's teeth from decay.
Good to know
Fluoride's benefit to teeth depends on an appropriate level of exposure, since excessive fluoride intake during tooth development can cause cosmetic enamel changes rather than providing additional protection.
Word origin
Where “fluoride” comes from
Formed from Latin fluere, meaning to flow, since fluorite, a mineral containing fluorine, was historically used as a flux to help ores flow more easily during smelting.