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UK Against Fluoridation

Thursday, September 04, 2008

USA - Touchy fluoride debate rages

.................“For over 60 years now scientific evidence clearly shows it is cost effective and provides an equitable prevention for tooth decay that can benefit everyone in a community,” he said in a phone interview after the meeting. “There is a preponderance of evidence.”

Based on that argument, the council voted on May 10, 2004 in favor of an ordinance to authorize the city staff to consult with the Texas Department of State Health Services and start adding fluoride to the water supply. But the city never got around to actually adding the chemical.

Last year, Councilman Bill Kiel started to look at the matter. The city soon will build a new water tower and if changes were needed for fluoride it would be cheaper to do them during the initial construction. Kiel said initially he was for adding fluoride.

Then he learned it was a hazardous waste product from the fertilization industry in Florida. When he started reviewing studies of the benefits he was not convinced. Europe has seen similar declines in tooth decay as the United States and many other countries don't add fluoride. In 2006, a federal review of fluoride in drinking water found many people, including infants were exposed to unsafe levels of fluoride because of a combination of exposures from drinking water and other sources, such air pollution, pesticides and background levels in foods.
The American Dental Association and Centers for Disease Control now recommend on their Web sites to not use fluoridated water when mixing baby formula.
Kiel is a retired geophysicist and readily admits to enjoying research and having plenty of time to do it. Looking at fluoride became his “job” for more than a year.
He came to the Alamo Heights City Council meeting with a 53 page summary of what he had found.
“There is nothing out there that says absolutely this is good or this is a bad thing,” he said. “You have to look at the collective evidence ... and I think in the end you pretty much come down on this cautionary stance.”..................

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