Estimation of Fluoride Content in Various Drinking Water Sources Available in Coimbatore District, Tamil Nadu, South India

Fluoride acts as a key element in dental caries prevention strategy. The consumption of drinking water with adequate fluoride concentration protects the tooth from dental caries.To assess the fluoride level in various drinking water sources available in Coimbatore city. 100 water samples from corporation water, bore-well water and packaged water were randomly collected from five zones of Coimbatore. Fluoride estimation was done by colour comparator technique. The fluoride concentration in bore well water (0.9 ppm) was found to be high when compare to corporation water (0.48 ppm) and bottled water (0.2 ppm). The result obtained from this study stated that the fluoride level was suboptimal in community water and bottled water. Various alternative measures to be taken to artificially fluoridate the drinking water in Coimbatore to have better dental health.