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FAN’s Translation Project

FAN regularly accesses and translates studies written in Chinese. FAN's collection includes over 40 studies examining fluoride's impacts on human health, including its effects on the brain, bones, fertility, the fetus, thyroid, and glucose metabolism.

Overview

To help promote greater scientific and medical understanding about fluoride’s impact on human health, particularly its effect on the brain, the Fluoride Action Network regularly accesses and translates studies published in non-English language journals. Prior to being translated, most of these studies had never been available to western audiences and were therefore rarely considered in regulatory and public health policies. FAN’s translations have thus introduced a significant amount of previously unknown research findings to the English-speaking world, and this has already had a significant impact on the public and scientific discourse.

Examples of FAN’s translations furthering scientific discourse on fluoride toxicity, include:

  • In July 2012, a team of Harvard scientists published a meta-review on fluoride and human IQ which cited and included 11 of FAN’s translations. (Choi 2012)
  • In 2011, an Iranian research team reported that they had replicated the findings of a study FAN translated and published in 2008 regarding the neurotoxic effects of occupational fluoride exposures. (Yazdi 2011)

Translations to Date

Since 2005, FAN has translated 48 studies published in non-English scientific journals, including:

  • 22 studies on fluoride’s effect on human IQ, some of which provide data on thyroid function as well;
  • 7 studies on fluoride’s impact on other indices of human brain function, including its effects on the fetal development;
  • 7 studies on fluoride’s impact on bones and joints, including research showing fluoride can directly cause clinical osteoarthritis;
  • 3 studies on fluoride’s effect on the human male reproductive system;
  • 2 studies on fluoride’s impact on insulin production in humans.

To see the full list of translations, click here.

Recently Completed Translations (2012)

In 2012, FAN conducted a comprehensive search of Chinese research databases for studies investigating fluoride toxicity in human populations and has accessed over 90 full-text studies. Thus far, FAN has translated 26 of these studies, including: 11 studies on human IQ, 2 studies on other indices of brain function, 7 studies on the bones and joints, 3 studies on male fertility, 2 studies on insulin production, and 2 studies on fetal health. To read these translations, and to access full-text copies of the original studies, click here.

Previous Translations (2007)

In 2007, FAN accessed, translated, and published 18 studies investigating fluoride’s neurotoxic effects on the Brain, including 11 studies on human IQ; 5 studies on other indices of neurotoxicity in fluoride-exposed humans; and 3 animal studies on fluoride’s impact on learning, memory, and behavior in animals. To access these translations, as well as copies of the original Chinese studies,  click here.

Help FAN Translate More Research by Adopting a Study!

If you see a paper in the list of pending translations that you would like to see translated into English, please consider adopting it! With a donation of $250, you can select a study that you would like to see translated and FAN will pay a professional translator to do just that. There are few better ways to contribute to the advance in understanding about fluoride’s toxicity than adopting a study. To learn more, click here.

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