Let all benefit from fluoridation
Let all benefit from fluoridation
My Word by Ann Lindsay
Article Launched: 07/08/2007 04:25:10 AM PDT
I feel passionate about oral health in our community. Therefore, I am a supporter of teaching children how to brush their teeth and eat healthy foods and expanding access to dental services. I am also a supporter of water fluoridation.
Preventing dental decay is cheaper than treating it. Prevention is one of the principal aims of public health. Health of the public should be the goal of all public officials, whether they work in health and human services or serve the public by overseeing its water supply.
Untreated dental decay is linked to malnutrition and anemia, both of which make it harder for children to do well in school and succeed in life. A pregnant woman with dental disease is more likely to deliver her baby prematurely, putting the baby in danger. Dental disease is also linked to heart disease, diabetes and some types of cancer.
A thousand to one. That is the ratio of children with dental decay to those with mild fluorosis seen by Dr. Francisco Ramos Gomez, pediatric dentist at University of California San Francisco. Fluorosis is white spots on otherwise healthy teeth caused by too much fluoride.
Twenty-four percent. That is the percent of children out of 3,000 who had tooth decay when examined by dental experts at Humboldt County schools over the last several years. Nine percent of these children needed immediate referral to a dentist for severe decay. For many children, treating cavities is out of the question since they don't have access to a dentist or money to pay for dental services. We could reduce this huge number of children with tooth decay by as much as 12-25 percent simply by adding fluoride to drinking water throughout Humboldt County. Adults with receding gums also benefit from fluoridated water.
Water districts and cities add chlorine to water to protect the public from disease, namely infections. Chlorine in high concentrations can be unhealthy, but our drinking water is carefully maintained and regulated. Arcata, Eureka, Scotia and Hoopa independently add fluoride to their water to protect the public from disease, namely dental disease.
Fluoride in high concentrations can be unhealthy, but fluoride added to drinking water in communities like ours without naturally fluoridated water is carefully monitored to ensure it is free from significant contaminants and diluted to one part fluoride per million parts water so it is safe.
Many people in the non-fluoridated districts buying water from Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District (HBMWD) have requested their water also be fluoridated to protect their health. Districts buying water from HBMWD that are not fluoridated are Fieldbrook, Blue Lake, McKinleyville, Manila and Cutten (Humboldt Community Services District).
HBMWD is considering adding fluoride centrally before selling water to its customers. The smaller districts most likely couldn't afford to fluoridate on their own. The ongoing cost of water fluoridation district-wide would be a few dollars per customer per year. What a bargain!
Some people in the community prefer to drink non-fluoridated water. Babies do not benefit from fluoridation until they have teeth. If babies are not breast fed, but are fed exclusively powdered formula mixed with fluoridated water, they face the small risk of fluorosis (white spots on their teeth) without any benefit.
Their parents should consider using premixed formula or using non-fluoridated water to mix powdered formula. Non-fluoridated water can be purchased inexpensively. There are filters available at greater cost to remove fluoride from water. People who don't want or need fluoridated water can be accommodated without denying the benefits of fluoridation to the rest of the population.
Opponents of water fluoridation say parents who want their children to benefit from fluoride should give them fluoride drops or pills prescribed by a doctor. This is expensive and labor intensive. Children who need drops the most due to poverty or poor diet are least likely to get them. It is known that people take less than half of what is prescribed to them. Relying on prescription fluoride, in fact, sentences some children to rotting mouths and other associated diseases.
Local supporters of water fluoridation include: The Humboldt-Del Norte Dental and Medical Societies, the California Nurses Association, First 5 Humboldt, Humboldt County Democratic and Republican Parties, Northcoast Children's Services, Humboldt Child Care Council, Humboldt-Del Norte Head Start Policy Council, United Indian Health Services, Mad River Community Hospital, St. Joseph's Hospital, Redwood Memorial Hospital, Mobile Medical Office, Open Door Health Centers, Six Rivers Dental Hygiene Component, Pediatricians of Humboldt County, the Arcata Eye, the Eureka Reporter and the Times Standard.
The Center for Disease Control named community water fluoridation one of the top 10 public health accomplishments of the whole 20th century. Isn't it time all of us should benefit?
Dr. Ann Lindsay is the Humboldt County Health Officer, and she lives in Eureka.
Comments (58) Attached to article
My Word by Ann Lindsay
Article Launched: 07/08/2007 04:25:10 AM PDT
I feel passionate about oral health in our community. Therefore, I am a supporter of teaching children how to brush their teeth and eat healthy foods and expanding access to dental services. I am also a supporter of water fluoridation.
Preventing dental decay is cheaper than treating it. Prevention is one of the principal aims of public health. Health of the public should be the goal of all public officials, whether they work in health and human services or serve the public by overseeing its water supply.
Untreated dental decay is linked to malnutrition and anemia, both of which make it harder for children to do well in school and succeed in life. A pregnant woman with dental disease is more likely to deliver her baby prematurely, putting the baby in danger. Dental disease is also linked to heart disease, diabetes and some types of cancer.
A thousand to one. That is the ratio of children with dental decay to those with mild fluorosis seen by Dr. Francisco Ramos Gomez, pediatric dentist at University of California San Francisco. Fluorosis is white spots on otherwise healthy teeth caused by too much fluoride.
Twenty-four percent. That is the percent of children out of 3,000 who had tooth decay when examined by dental experts at Humboldt County schools over the last several years. Nine percent of these children needed immediate referral to a dentist for severe decay. For many children, treating cavities is out of the question since they don't have access to a dentist or money to pay for dental services. We could reduce this huge number of children with tooth decay by as much as 12-25 percent simply by adding fluoride to drinking water throughout Humboldt County. Adults with receding gums also benefit from fluoridated water.
Water districts and cities add chlorine to water to protect the public from disease, namely infections. Chlorine in high concentrations can be unhealthy, but our drinking water is carefully maintained and regulated. Arcata, Eureka, Scotia and Hoopa independently add fluoride to their water to protect the public from disease, namely dental disease.
Fluoride in high concentrations can be unhealthy, but fluoride added to drinking water in communities like ours without naturally fluoridated water is carefully monitored to ensure it is free from significant contaminants and diluted to one part fluoride per million parts water so it is safe.
Many people in the non-fluoridated districts buying water from Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District (HBMWD) have requested their water also be fluoridated to protect their health. Districts buying water from HBMWD that are not fluoridated are Fieldbrook, Blue Lake, McKinleyville, Manila and Cutten (Humboldt Community Services District).
HBMWD is considering adding fluoride centrally before selling water to its customers. The smaller districts most likely couldn't afford to fluoridate on their own. The ongoing cost of water fluoridation district-wide would be a few dollars per customer per year. What a bargain!
Some people in the community prefer to drink non-fluoridated water. Babies do not benefit from fluoridation until they have teeth. If babies are not breast fed, but are fed exclusively powdered formula mixed with fluoridated water, they face the small risk of fluorosis (white spots on their teeth) without any benefit.
Their parents should consider using premixed formula or using non-fluoridated water to mix powdered formula. Non-fluoridated water can be purchased inexpensively. There are filters available at greater cost to remove fluoride from water. People who don't want or need fluoridated water can be accommodated without denying the benefits of fluoridation to the rest of the population.
Opponents of water fluoridation say parents who want their children to benefit from fluoride should give them fluoride drops or pills prescribed by a doctor. This is expensive and labor intensive. Children who need drops the most due to poverty or poor diet are least likely to get them. It is known that people take less than half of what is prescribed to them. Relying on prescription fluoride, in fact, sentences some children to rotting mouths and other associated diseases.
Local supporters of water fluoridation include: The Humboldt-Del Norte Dental and Medical Societies, the California Nurses Association, First 5 Humboldt, Humboldt County Democratic and Republican Parties, Northcoast Children's Services, Humboldt Child Care Council, Humboldt-Del Norte Head Start Policy Council, United Indian Health Services, Mad River Community Hospital, St. Joseph's Hospital, Redwood Memorial Hospital, Mobile Medical Office, Open Door Health Centers, Six Rivers Dental Hygiene Component, Pediatricians of Humboldt County, the Arcata Eye, the Eureka Reporter and the Times Standard.
The Center for Disease Control named community water fluoridation one of the top 10 public health accomplishments of the whole 20th century. Isn't it time all of us should benefit?
Dr. Ann Lindsay is the Humboldt County Health Officer, and she lives in Eureka.
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