Is fluoride a mutagen?

Recent studies suggest that fluoride may be genotoxic. While the concentration of fluoride in artificially fluoridated water (1 mg Fl-1) is generally considered to be "safe", levels of fluoride present in a number of widely used dental health products, such as fluoride-containing toothpaste, appear to be potentially mutagenic. Since fluoride is increasingly being used as a drug, and contamination of the total environment by fluoride emissions and solid wastes from industry is a growing problem, a review of the evidence regarding the potential mutagenicity of fluoride may be in order.