Fluoride content of commercially available ready-to-drink tea in Bangkok, Thailand

Children in Thailand are consuming more ready-to-drink tea. The fluoride content of this tea needs to be determined to understand its effect on the teeth of those children. We aimed to determine the fluoride content of ready-to-drink tea sold commercially in Bangkok, Thailand. We collected 3 samples of 58 ready-to-drink teas and examined each sample in duplicated using an ion-selective electrode to determine the fluoride content. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to evaluate differences in fluoride content by tea type with the 95% confidence interval. The mean ± standard deviation (SD) fluoride content was 0.81±0.51 mg/l (range: 0.07-2.15 mg/l). There were no statistically significant differences in fluoride content by tea type (p>0.05). Thirty-nine of the 58 types of tea examines (67%) exceeded the recommended daily intake of fluoride set for children. Consumption of ready-to-drink tea commercially sold in Thailand by children may increase their risk of developing dental fluorosis.