TAMPA, Fla. — Hillsborough County could become one of the latest places in the Bay area to remove fluoride from drinking water.

State Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo recommended removing it from drinking water last fall. Since then, Winter Haven has already voted to remove it.

And last week, Manatee County had its first conversation proposing the removal.

In Hillsborough, Commissioner Joshua Wostal said he wants to remove the addition of fluoride from the water supply.

Like Ladapo, Wostal brings up a federal ruling against the Environmental Protection Agency in a lawsuit over fluoride in drinking water. In that decision, the judge cited evidence showing fluoride presents a risk to public health and has been associated with a reduction in the IQ of children.

“We aren’t taking into account the many other ways that a child might absorb it into their body, such as brushing their teeth two times a day, which is recommended by the ADA (American Dental Association),” Wostal said. “So there is just really a, 'hey, the new imperial data and science says that we might be (a detriment) to our children’s IQ.' That was his ruling, and now, we need to make a policy decision based on that.”

In 1950, federal officials endorsed water fluoridation to prevent tooth decay, and they continued to promote it even after fluoride toothpaste brands hit the market several years later.

Fluoride can come from a number of sources, but drinking water is the main source for Americans, researchers say. Nearly two-thirds of the U.S. population currently gets fluoridated drinking water, according to CDC data.

Since 2015, federal health officials have recommended a fluoridation level of 0.7 milligrams per liter of water. For five decades before that, the recommended upper range was 1.2. The World Health Organization has set a safe limit for fluoride in drinking water of 1.5.

Separately, the EPA has a longstanding requirement that water systems cannot have more than 4 milligrams of fluoride per liter of water. That standard is designed to prevent skeletal fluorosis, a potentially crippling disorder which causes weaker bones, stiffness and pain.

Fluoride strengthens teeth and reduces cavities by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The addition of low levels of fluoride to drinking water has long been considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century.

Despite the ruling last fall, the ADA still endorses the addition of fluoride into public drinking water.

Although not a priority of his plan, Wostal says should the county stop using fluoride in drinking water, it could save taxpayers around $300,000 per year.

A full county commission vote would need to happen before the proposal is approved.