Objective. To determine the total fluoride dose to which children were exposed during the critical age of developing dental fluorosis, in an optimally fluoridated region, having diet (liquids and solids) and dentifrice as fluoride sources. Methods. For the pilot study, 39 children (aged 20 to 30 months) were selected from a day care center in Piracicaba, Brazil. They drank and ate food prepared with fluoridated water. To determine the total dose of fluoride exposure, duplicate-plate samples and products from tooth brushing were collected for two consecutive days, in four periods of the year. Fluoride was determined using an ion specific electrode. A 5% level of significance variance analysis (Anova) was carried out. Results. Children were exposed to a total fluoride dose of 0.090 mg/day/kg of body weight, of which 45% came from the diet and 55% from dentifrice. Conclusions. Assuming 0.07 mg/kg as a threshold value of fluoride systemic exposure, children were exposed to a risk dose for dental fluorosis. Thus, measures to reduce fluoride intake at the studied age range would be recommended. Reducing the amount of dentifrice used for tooth brushing seems to be the best measure, given the risk/benefits of fluoride use from the public health perspective.356576581Burt, B.A., The changing patterns of systemic fluoride intake (1992) J. Dent. Res., 71 (SPEC. ISSUE), pp. 1228-1237Cury, J.A., Representatividade dos dentifrícios fluoretados no mercado brasileiro e sua confiabilidade como método preventivo (1989), São Paulo: Associação Brasileira de Odontologia PreventivaCury, J.A., Cárie e creme dental (1998) J. ABOPREV, 9, p. 2. , (espec)Cury, J.A., Determination of appropriate exposure of fluoride in non-EME countries in the future (2000) J. Dent. Res., 79 (4), p. 901Cury, J.A., Uso do flúor e o controle da cárie como doença (2001), pp. 34-68. , Baratieri LNMonteiro S, Andrada MAC, Vieira LCC, Ritter AV, Cardoso AC. Odontologia Restauradora - Fundamentos e Possibilidades. São Paulo: SantosDuarte, F.F., Pisaneschi, E., Cury, J.A., Avaliação do flúor dos dentifrícios mais consumidos no Brasil e comercializados nas cinco regiões do país (1999) Rev. ABOPREV, 2 (2), pp. 3-10Fejerskov, O., Baelum, V., Richards, A., Dose-response and dental fluorosis (chapter 9) (1996) Fluoride in Dentistry, , Fejerskov O, Ekstrand J, Burt BA. 2nd ed. Copenhagen: Munksgaard Chapter 9Ferreira, H.C.G., Gomes, A.M.M., Silva, K.R.C.S., Rodrigues, C.R.M.D., Gomes, A.A., Avaliação do teor de flúor na água de abastecimento público do município de Vitória, ES (1999) Rev. APCD, 53 (6), pp. 455-459Guha-Chowdhury, N., Drummond, B.K., Smillie, A.C., Total fluoride intake in children aged 3 to 4 years: A longitudinal study (1996) J. Dent. Res., 75, pp. 1451-1457Holloway, P.J., Ellwood, R.P., The prevalence, causes and cosmetic importance of dental fluorosis in the United Kingdom: A review (1997) Community Dent. Health, 14, pp. 148-155Tratamento e fluoretação da água dos municípios brasileiros (2000), http://www.saude.gov.br/programas/bucal/fluoreta%.htm, Ministério da Saúde. [on line]. Disponível em URL: [dez 18]Narvai, P.C., Frazão, P., Castellanos, R.A., Declínio na experiência de cárie em dentes permanentes de escolares brasileiros no final do século XX (1999) Odontol. Socied., 1, pp. 25-29Paiva, S.M., Cury, J.A., Contribution of diet and fluoridated dentifrice to the risk of dental fluorosis (1999) J. Dent. Res., 78, p. 367. , [IADR abstract n. 2089]Pendrys, D.G., Katz, R.V., Morse, D.E., Risk factors for enamel fluorosis in a fluoridated population (1996) Am. J. Epidemiol., 143, pp. 808-815Reis, S.R.A., Mendonça, L.L., Cabral, M.B.B.S., Marchionni, A.M.T., Andrade, M.G.S., Souza, F.M., Fluorose dental, estado nutricional e cárie dental em escolares de diferentes estratos socioeconômicos de Salvador, Bahia - Parte I (1999) RPG Rev. Pós. Grad., 6, pp. 387-394Rojas-Sanchez, F., Kelly, S.A., Drake, K.M., Eckert, G.J., Stookey, G.K., Dunipace, A.J., Fluoride intake from foods, beverages and dentifrice by young children in communities with negligible and optimally fluoridated water: A pilot study (1999) Community Dent. Oral. Epidemiol., 27, pp. 288-297(2001), http://www.saude.sp.gov.br/html/fr_sbucal.htm, Secretaria de Estado da Saúde. Resolução SS-95, de 27/06/200. Recomendações sobre o uso de produtos fluorados no âmbito do SUS/SP em função do risco de cárie dentária. [on line] [ ago21]Taves, D.R., Separation of fluoride by rapid diffusion using hexamethyldisiloxane (1968) Talanta, 15, pp. 969-974Villena, R.S., Cury, J.A., Flúor: Uso racional na 1a infância (1998) Odontologia na 1a Infância, pp. 291-314. , Nahas S. São Paulo: Santo
