‘Inadmissable and Cruel’: Fear and Risk in Britain’s Post-War Fluoride Debate

Edinburgh History of Medicine Group Wednesday, March 30, 2016 from 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM (BST) Edinburgh, United Kingdom

After WWII, British doctors and politicians thought that they could import the perfect solution for dental illness: drinking water fluoridation. But the campaigns they faced brought together the libertarian Right, the socialist Left, advocates of ‘real foods’ and the nascent Green movement. Anti-fluoridisers campaigned for ‘freedom’ against an interfering government, amid medical scandals such as the Thalidomide tragedy. This paper will use the controversy to explore the historical relationship between the body, civil rights, consumerism, the citizenry and the medical profession.

This is an Edinburgh History of Medicine Group event, a collaboration between the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and the University of Edinburgh.

Refreshments at 4pm, seminar starts at 4.30pm.

Speaker: Prof Glen O’Hara (Oxford Brookes University)

Admission free

Anti-fluoridisers? That's a new one on me. I wonder if he supports us or the establishment? Do I need to ask?