My Water's Fluoride (MWF) allows people to learn about their community’s drinking water fluoridation
levels. MWF also provides information on the number of people served by the water system, the water
source, and if the water system fluoridates its water supply.
The best source of information on fluoride levels in your water system is your local water
provider (utility). All water utilities must provide their customers with an annual Consumer
Confidence Report that provides information on a system’s water quality, including its fluoridation
level.
How Much Fluoride Is Needed to Prevent Tooth Decay?
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends a level of 0.7 milligrams per Liter (mg/L) of fluoride in your drinking
water. This is the level that prevents tooth decay and promotes good oral health.
If your water’s fluoride level is either below or above the recommended level, please speak to
your dental professional or pediatrician for advice on improving your oral health. For more
information about fluoride, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has
additional information on fluoride and water fluoridation.
About the MWF Web Application
The Division of Oral Health (DOH) has developed MWF to allow consumers in participating
states to find information about their water system. MWF is a voluntary public disclosure web site and states choose whether
they will participate or if they choose to use other ways to notify the public about their program, such as a state
web site. States choose to display information on public water systems and some may choose to offer state fluoridation
reports. The information supplied in MWF is provided by each state to CDC’s Water Fluoridation Reporting System (WFRS).
Values presented in MWF reports are not real-time information and may reflect a target value that a water system adjusts towards and not actual fluoride test results obtained by a water facility. Some variation around the target fluoride concentration can be expected during operations. Since the oral health benefits of water fluoridation come from an ongoing low-level exposure to fluoride, small variations in the amount of fluoride in the water are not as meaningful as whether the system is adjusting the fluoride concentration towards the recommended level.
The suggested citation for this application is:
Division of Oral Health: My Water's Fluoride web application. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion,
Atlanta, GA, 2016. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/oralhealth/.
For information about the content presented by MWF, please contact your state’s oral health
program. Find your state’s oral health program at the
Association of State and Territorial Dental Programs.
The information presented in MWF is provided by each State’s oral health program and represents the most recent data update provided by the State.