Never a cut and dry issue, water fluoridation is again in the news. U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, M.D. has officially endorsed water fluoridation as "one of the most effective choices communities can make to prevent health problems while actually improving the oral health of their citizens."
Fluoridation became an official policy of the U.S. Public Health Service in 1951, and by 1960 was used widely throughout the country, reaching about 50 million people. Every surgeon general for the past 50 years has endorsed the fluoridation of community water supplies as both a safe and effective method of curbing tooth decay.
Dr. Benjamin’s endorsement was made in a letter read in the opening ceremony of the National Oral Health Conference in Huntsville, Alabama. While the endorsement is in-step with previous Surgeons General, to some water fluoridation remains a controversial issue. Fluoridation has been the subject of numerous court cases where activists have stated that their right to consent to medical treatment is infringed by mandatory water fluoridation.
Most recently in 2011 the Plinellas County, Florida commissioners voted to remove fluoride from the county’s public drinking water. This opened the county up to a series of ten editorials from the Tampa Bay Times challenging the commissioners’ vote and stating that water fluoridation was an effective method of preventing tooth decay. In March of 2013, the county resumed fluoridation after a 6-1 vote.
"Fluoridation's effectiveness in preventing tooth decay is not limited to children, but extends throughout life, resulting in fewer and less severe cavities," Dr. Benjamin wrote. "In fact, each generation born since the implementation of water fluoridation has enjoyed better dental health than the generation that preceded it."
Again, these endorsements from the Surgeon General are nothing new, and will surely not put the matter to rest for some population of the country. What is known, however, is that water fluoridation is one of many tools at our disposal to reduce the rising rate of tooth decay throughout the nation. In a statement on the ADA’s website, ADA President Robert A Faiella said, "The ADA's policies regarding community water fluoridation are based on the best available science showing that fluoridation is a safe, effective way to prevent dental decay. The ADA, along with state and local dental societies, continues to work with federal, state and local agencies to increase the number of communities benefiting from this very effective public health measure. We applaud Dr. Benjamin for making this public endorsement of fluoridation."
You may read the full text of Dr. Benjamin’s letter to the National Oral Health Conference here.
What are your thoughts on water fluoridation? Let us know in the comments.
