Donald Trump will remove fluoride from tap water, says Robert F Kennedy Jr

Former independent presidential candidate is to be in charge of health initiatives if ex-president is elected

Donald Trump will move to strip fluoride from drinking water on his first day in office, according to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Trump has promised to put Mr Kennedy in charge of health initiatives in his administration if he is elected.
“On January 20, the Trump White House will advise all US water systems to remove fluoride from public water,” Mr Kennedy said. Trump and his wife Melania “want to Make America Healthy Again,” he added, repeating a phrase Trump often uses and links to Mr Kennedy.
Fluoride strengthens teeth and reduces cavities by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear.
“While president Trump has received a variety of policy ideas, he is focused on Tuesday’s election,” Danielle Alvarez, Trump campaign senior advisor, said in response.
In 1950, federal officials endorsed water fluoridation to prevent tooth decay, and continued to promote it even after fluoride toothpaste brands hit the market several years later. Though fluoride can come from a number of sources, drinking water is the main source for Americans, researchers say.
Officials lowered their recommendation for drinking water fluoride levels in 2015 to address a tooth condition called fluorosis that can cause splotches on teeth and became more common in children.
In August, a federal agency determined “with moderate confidence” that there is a link between higher levels of fluoride exposure and lower IQ in children. The National Toxicology Program based its conclusion on studies involving fluoride levels at about twice the recommended limit for drinking water.
A federal judge later cited that study ordering the US Environmental Protection Agency to further regulate fluoride in drinking water. US District Judge Edward Chen cautioned that it is not certain that the amount of fluoride typically added to water is causing lower IQ in children, but he concluded that mounting research points to an unreasonable risk that it could be. 
He ordered the EPA to take steps to lower that risk, but did not say what those measures should be.
What role Mr Kennedy might hold if Trump wins on Tuesday remains unclear. He recently told NewsNation that Trump asked him to “reorganise” agencies including the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration and some agencies under the Department of Agriculture.
The former independent presidential candidate has become one of Trump’s top surrogates. Trump frequently mentions having the support of Kennedy, a scion of a Democratic dynasty and the son of former Attorney General Robert Kennedy and nephew of president John F. Kennedy.
Mr Kennedy travelled with Trump on Friday and spoke at his rallies in Michigan and Wisconsin.
Trump said on Saturday that he told Mr Kennedy: “You can work on food, you can work on anything you want” except oil policy.
“He wants health, he wants women’s health, he wants men’s health, he wants kids, he wants everything,” Trump added.