Fluoride content of soft drinks, nectars, juices, juice drinks, concentrates, teas and infusions marketed in Portugal

Abstract

A potentiometric method using a fluoride combination ion-selective electrode was validated and used to analyse 183 samples, including soft drinks, juices, nectars, juice drinks, concentrates, teas and infusions marketed in Portugal. The fluoride levels were higher in extract-based soft drinks, juice drinks and juice, with fluoride values of 0.86 ± 0.35, 0.40 ± 0.24 and 0.37 ± 0.11 mg l⁻¹, respectively. The lowest fluoride concentration was found in infusion samples (0.12 ± 0.01 mg l⁻¹), followed by teas and carbonated soft drinks with fluoride concentrations of 0.16 ± 0.12 and 0.18 ± 0.07 mg l⁻¹, respectively. Nectars, concentrates and juice-based drinks had similar fluoride concentrations of 0.33 ± 0.16, 0.29 ± 0.12 and 0.25 ± 0.14 mg l⁻¹, respectively. The fluoride concentrations in all these samples would only contribute intakes below the acceptable daily intake (ADI = 0.05 mg kg⁻¹ body weight day⁻¹), indicating that, individually, these beverages cannot induce fluoride toxicity in the population group of children.

Keywords:

• fluoride
• fluorosis
• potentiometric method
• validation method
• beverages
• infusions

Acknowledgments

The authors greatly acknowledge all the employees of the Bromatology and Water Quality, Faculty of Pharmacy, Lisbon, who helped to perform this work.