New Zealand - J.S. Believes it is completely safe

Fluoride `Absolutely Safe' and Recommended
Sir, I was not going to answer Mrs Pallesen's letter (Mailbox, October 10), there were just so many misstatements in it, but because of several comments made to me, I've decided I should. Fluoridation is no more "medication'' than iodising salt or chlorinating water.
No more research is needed on it; it's absolutely safe and extremely effective. I did a vast amount of reading on it and the more I read of worldwide research, the more convinced I became of its complete safety.
Mrs Moncrieff thought the bad teeth in New Zealand were due to Coca Cola, and in spite of spending a whole evening with her, I was unable to convince her otherwise.
I strongly recommend mothers of young children to give them fluoride tablets. They're extremely effective, I've recommended them to many and usually they get to the age of 20 with either no fillings, or at most one or two. Dental caries - with a good diet, fluoridation (or fluoride tablets) and regular toothbrushing - is almost totally preventable.

J S ROXBURGH

Nelson, November 1