Water fluoridation is the biggest medical scandal since thalidomide

Water fluoridation is the biggest medical scandal since thalidomide

This week the Health Secretary, Alan Johnson, is expected to call for more health authorities to consider water fluoridation. This is on top of the already existing drive by Southampton Primary Care Trust for water fluoridation and the still unpublished study by South Central Strategic Health Authority on the practicalities of how to carry out water fluoridation in our area.

John Spottiswoode, Green Party spokesman in South West Hampshire said: “The case for water fluoridation has been completely discredited, and has been described by one expert as 'junk science' (1). The government’s own 2000 York Review into fluoridation was unable to find any high quality research to support claims of efficacy or safety for the practice, which began in some areas back in 1945. The claims of benefit for teeth are unproven, even after all these years, and there is a high probability of major dental problems due to fluorosis in fluoridated areas. Dental fluorosis is a symptom of the systemic poisoning of the body by fluoride, and when 48% of people in a fluoridated area show signs of dental fluorosis, alarm bells should be ringing and we cannot help but have a major concern for public health. (2).”

“In addition it is becoming clear that far from reducing dental costs per child, fluoridated areas consistently spend more on dental care than non-fluoridated areas (3).”

“However there are many more worrying recent studies pointing to several health problems in the body. These range from skeletal fluorosis (brittle bones and arthritis-like symptoms of rigidity), bone cancer, thyroid problems, brain damage and hypersensitive reactions (2).”

“One basic problem is that the decision makers in government seem to be stuck with the (discredited) understanding about fluoride from when they were trained twenty or thirty years ago. The latest research demonstrates the major health dangers and over 1400 extremely respected professional have signed a call to end water fluoridation worldwide (6). Fluoride has been shown to be especially dangerous for children (8). Government should follow the principle of ‘do no harm’ to citizens.”
“Why does our government ignore the evidence against fluoridation and only listen to the arguments in favour? It is partly the fact that the government funds a pro-fluoridation campaign organisation, the British Fluoridation Society, to produce official fluoridation documents which are distributed widely to officials. So the government is paying a fluoridation pressure group to tell its own officials that fluoride is good. This situation more closely resembles farce than responsible government. It beggars belief that the government still pushes such discredited ideas.”
“It is a violation of our human rights to push a very nasty chemical into our bodies without choice via the water supply, even if it is (mistakenly) believed to be medicinal (9). Fluorine is an extremely electronegative and extremely reactive toxic element that is not normally present in significant levels in our environment. What the government wants to do is force unproven medication, with no clear or controlled dose, on to people who could very well suffer severe health problems because of it.”
John Spottiswoode concluded by saying that “I think that this a massively important health scandal and I agree with Professor A Susheela, an international fluoride expert based in India, when she said that fluoridation ‘may dwarf the thalidomide tragedy’(10).”
ENDS
Notes for Editors:

1) Christopher Bryson, author of ‘The Fluoride Deception’ describes fluoride science as ‘junk science’: http://www.fluoridealert.org/fluoride-deception.htm

2) The National Academy of Sciences 2006 report in the USA found persuasive evidence that fluoridation causes fluorosis, increases bone fractures as well as stiffness of the joints, and that it may be related to Alzheimer’s Disease. More information can be found regarding the research on the web site: http://www.foodcures.net/Nutrition/Water_fluor.php . This gives further details of the research, plus a downloadable copy of the presentation given to Portsmouth PCT when they decided not to proceed with fluoridation in their area.

3) See attached report on the spending in Wolverhampton in the five years post water fluoridation.

4) "Medicinal product: Any substance or combination of substances presented as having properties for treating or preventing disease in human beings" [our emphasis]. Directive 2004/27/EC on medicinal products for human use.

5) Dental health expenditure comment based upon a review of Dental Practice Board Data by Chris Holdcroft in attached documents - Other Side of the Coin (page 16).

6) Professional statement calling for water fluoridation to stop: http://www.fluoridealert.org/professionals.statement.html

7) "Outcome of consultation 5. A Strategic Health Authority shall not proceed with any step regarding fluoridation arrangements that falls within section 89(2) of the Act unless, having regard to the extent of support for the proposal and the cogency of the arguments advanced, the Authority are satisfied that the health arguments in favour of proceeding with the proposal outweigh all arguments against proceeding."
Statutory Instrument 2005 No. 921 The Water Fluoridation (Consultation) (England) Regulations 2005.

8) The American Dental Association recommends NOT putting fluoridated water in children’s bottles.
9) Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine
Chapter II - Consent
Article 5 - General rule
- An intervention in the health field may only be carried out after the person concerned has given free and informed consent to it.
- This person shall beforehand be given appropriate information as to the purpose and nature of the intervention as well as on its consequences and risks.

- The person concerned may freely withdraw consent at any time.

10) Professor A Susheela has studied the fluoride problems in India and tried to advise our government on water fluoridation.

For more information please contact:
John Spottiswoode, SW Hants Green Party
14 Evelyn Crescent, Southampton, SO15 5JE
Email: john.spottiswoode@btinternet.com
or by telephone 02380 789230, mobile 07796 056763