Robert F Kennedy Jr says Donald Trump would push to remove fluoride from water

Fluoride strengthens teeth and reduces cavities by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear, according to the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.

The addition of low levels of fluoride to drinking water has long been considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century.

Mr Kennedy, a prominent proponent of debunked public health claims, made the declaration on the social media platform X alongside a variety of claims about the health effects of fluoride.

“On January 20, the Trump White House will advise all US water systems to remove fluoride from public water,” Mr Kennedy wrote.

Mr Trump and his wife, Melania Trump, “want to Make America Healthy Again”, he added, repeating a phrase Mr Trump often uses and links to Mr Kennedy.

It was not immediately clear if Mr Kennedy discussed Saturday’s post with Mr Trump or his aides.

Neither Mr Trump’s campaign nor a spokesperson for Mr Kennedy responded to questions on Saturday evening.

But the sudden and unexpected weekend social media post evoked the chaotic policymaking that defined Mr Trump’s White House tenure when he would issue policy declarations on social media at virtually all hours.

It also underscored the concerns many experts have about Mr Kennedy, who has long promoted debunked theories about vaccine safety, having influence over US public health.

In 1950, federal officials endorsed water fluoridation to prevent tooth decay and continued to promote it even after fluoride toothpaste brands hit the market several years later. Though fluoride can come from several sources, drinking water is the main source for Americans, researchers say.

Officials lowered their recommendation for drinking water fluoride levels in 2015 to address a tooth condition called fluorosis, that can cause splotches on teeth and was becoming more common in US kids.

In August, a federal agency determined “with moderate confidence” that there is a link between higher levels of fluoride exposure and lower IQ in kids.

The National Toxicology Programme based its conclusion on studies involving fluoride levels at about twice the recommended limit for drinking water.

A federal judge later cited that study in ordering the US Environmental Protection Agency to further regulate fluoride in drinking water.

US District Judge Edward Chen cautioned that it is not certain that the amount of fluoride typically added to water is causing lower IQ in kids, but he concluded that mounting research points to an unreasonable risk that it could be.

He ordered the EPA to take steps to lower that risk but did not say what those measures should be.

In his X post on Saturday, Mr Kennedy tagged Michael Connett, the lead attorney representing the plaintiff in that lawsuit, the environmental advocacy group Food & Water Watch.

Mr Kennedy’s anti-vaccine organization has a lawsuit pending against news organisations including The Associated Press, accusing them of violating antitrust laws by taking action to identify misinformation, including about Covid-19 and Covid-19 vaccines.

Mr Kennedy is on leave from the group but is listed as one of its attorneys in the lawsuit.

What role Kennedy might hold if Mr Trump wins on Tuesday remains unclear. Mr Kennedy recently told NewsNation that Mr Trump asked him to “reorganise” agencies including the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration and some agencies under the Department of Agriculture.

But for now, the former independent presidential candidate has become one of Mr Trump’s top surrogates.