Evaluation of fluoride concentration in water supply of nursery schools: an exploratory study

Abstract

Fluoride concentration is an important parameter for the quality assessment of water fluoridation, being the recommended content of fluoride between 0.6 and 0.8 ppm. The aim of this study was to evaluate the fluoridation of the water supplying 10 creches in Anápolis, through fluoride analysis in a digital colorimeter. Eight of the ten samples, each representing one creche, were within the expected specifications. The remaining two creches used water from either mixed sources or wells. The data obtained in this study highlights the importance of monitoring the fluoride concentration in water serving nursery schools, since children constitute a risk group for the development of dental fluorosis.Keywords: Water supply, Fluoridation, Monitoring.