USA - Say no to those who say no to those who say no

Just say 'no' to fluoride foes
Wednesday, January 31, 2007 1:10 AM EST
Like a child who won't take no for an answer, fluoride foes in North Attleboro have gotten petulant in their demands.
There is a simple solution to their latest tantrum: Just say "no."
Foes including board of health member Diane Battistello last week went before the board of selectmen with a deal: The health board would agree to drop a lawsuit against the town's department of public works which seeks a halt to fluoridation. In exchange, the town would agree to stop fluoridating the town's water supply.
That's not a deal. That's extortion, and selectmen rightly dismissed it.
Battistello added insult to injury by suggesting that fluoridation of the water was a public health crisis, comparing it to raw sewage.
"This is a health concern," Battistello told selectmen. "If there were raw sewage flowing in the street you wouldn't ask the voters whether we should clean it up. You'd just want us to go and out and stop it."
Comparing the addition of one part per million of fluoride in town water to "raw sewage flowing in the street" is a slap in the face to the 6,778 North Attleboro voters who decided in November 2000 that they WANTED fluoridation. The wide margin of victory - 59 to 41 percent in an election that drew the town's highest turnout in more than a decade - was an indication that the voters didn't believe fluoride foes' scare tactics, that they wanted North Attleboro to join the growing majority of communities enjoying the benefits of fluoridation.

There is no "health concern." Leading health authorities, as they have for more than half a century, continue to support fluoridation. For example:

AMERICAN DENTAL ASSOCIATION: "The Association endorses community water fluoridation as a safe, beneficial and cost-effective public health measure for preventing dental caries."

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION: "Fluoridation safely and inexpensively benefits both children and adults by effectively preventing tooth decay, regardless of socioeconomic status or access to care. Fluoridation has played an important role in the reductions in tooth decay (40-70 percent in children) and of tooth loss in adults (40-60 percent)."

AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION: "The AMA recognizes the important public health benefits of drinking properly fluoridated water and encourages its member physicians and medical societies to work with local and state health departments, dental societies, and concerned citizens to assure the optimal fluoridation of community drinking water supplies."

SURGEON GENERAL RICHARD H. CARMONA: "I join previous Surgeons General in acknowledging the continuing public health role for community water fluoridation in enhancing the oral health of all Americans."

Because of the wide margin of victory in 2000 and because leading health authorities continue to support fluoridation, selectmen should also reject Chairman John Rhyno's well-meaning proposal to put the issue back on the ballot as a way of resolving the question once and for all. This is simply a way to appease the foes, who, like petulant children, will never be satisfied unless they get their way.

However, there is no indication that fluoride is doing anything but helping public health in North Attleboro. And there is no evidence that the public at large has changed its mind since 2000.

Selectmen should just say "no" to the wailing of a handful of fluoride foes and follow the wishes of the nearly 7,000 voters who want fluoridation.

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