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ReddittRefugee ago

The groundwater in large areas of India and Sri Lanka are contaminated with high levels of fluoride.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/248923815_The_fluoride_problem_in_the_ground_water_of_Sri_Lanka_-_environmental_management_and_health

http://schools.indiawaterportal.org/wq-test/fluoride-factsheet

Unfortunately, almost all the tea growing regions in both countries are affected, and this is why these teas have such high levels of fluorine.

I think that tea from India like Darjeeling, and Orange Pekoe from Sri Lanka tastes fantastic (not the stuff you get in America, if you're ever in India or Sri Lanka and get a chance to have local tea, you'll know) But you're going to get a large dose of fluoride when you drink it.

Bangladesh and Pakistan are affected by this also. A little known fact is that the famous pink salt from Pakistan contains lots of fluoride.

If you are going to be living for more than a few months in India or anywhere else in South Asia, you should be aware that the tap water in affected areas can contain massive amounts of fluoride, more than in cities that fluoridate their tap water.

Also, while it's true that natural sources of fluoride like calcium fluoride are not as bad for you as as the fluorosilicic acid cities in America use, there's way too much calcium fluoride in many parts of South Asia. Kids get weak, mottled teeth. Farm animals get mangy fur. The government of India is devoting a lot of research to the development of large-scale defluoridation technologies.