ingestion of fluoride toothpaste during toothbrushing by children

The purpose of this study was to determine the brushing time and the amount of fluoride not recovered from the mouth of children after brushing with a fluoride containing toothpaste. The fluoride recovered following tooth brushing was determined after HMDS diffusion using the fluoride electrode. Brushing time averaged [ +/- SE] 59 +/- 5 seconds, it did not correlate with age. Seven of the children did not expectorate. The average quantity of fluoride not recovered was 0.37 +/- 0.05 mg [range 0.08 to 0.82 mg]. It was concluded that the amount of ingested fluoride associated with a single brushing of the teeth exceeds the average dietary fluoride intake by young children living in areas without fluoridation and that it is about 75% of the dietary fluoride intake in fluoridated areas. Toothpastes containing fluoride should be considered as a major source of ingested fluoride, particularly for children at risk of dental fluorosis