.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

UK Against Fluoridation

Monday, April 30, 2018

F.A.N. Newssetter

Yes we have reached our goal of $75,000 in our TSCA lawsuit fundraiser* and we did it a month ahead of schedule thanks to supporters like you. See the thank you video from Paul and Michael. This will be matched by two fabulously generous pledges of $75,000 from an individual and a small non-profit.  As of this morning our FAN total stands at $77,995 from 504 donors.  We expect that this will increase as there are checks in the mail.
On behalf of the FAN team, 500 thank yous!


* The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) authorizes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to prohibit the “particular use” of a chemical that presents an unreasonable risk to the general public or susceptible subpopulations. TSCA gives EPA the authority to prohibit drinking water additives.
 
The Fluoride Action Network together with Food & Water Watch, American Academy of Environmental Medicine, International Academy of Oral Medicine & Toxicology, Moms Against Fluoridation and others petitioned EPA to exercise its authority to prohibit the purposeful addition of fluoridation chemicals to U.S. water supplies. We made this request on the grounds that a large body of animal, cellular, and human research shows that fluoride is neurotoxic at doses within the range now seen in fluoridated communities.


We have won the first two rounds in Federal Court. The first was the Dec 21, 2017, ruling to allow the case to go forward, thus ending EPA’s effort to dismiss the case. The second ruling on Feb 7, 2018, allows us to enter new studies into consideration, something that EPA argued against.

W.D.D.T.Y

Image
Drug companies would stop being profitable if their drugs actually cured people—because they would lose their market. In fact, curing people is "an unsustainable business model," says merchant bank Goldman Sachs.
The bank is hesitant about investing in the emerging biotech industry because it's just too good at curing people.
Its gene therapy, which delivers 'one-shot cures', isn't sustainable because its market of sufferers would eventually disappear, warns the bank in an analysis of the sector. "While this proposition (of quick cures) carries tremendous value for patients and society, it could represent a challenge for genome medicine developers looking for sustained cash flow," one of the bank's analysts, Salveen Richter, writes in a note to clients.
He quotes the example of Gilead Sciences whose gene therapy for hepatitis C achieved cure rates of more than 90 per cent. The company's sales in the US for the treatment peaked at $12.5bn but have been falling since. Sales are predicted to be just $4bn this year.
The company is "a case in point where the success of its hepatitis C franchise has gradually exhausted the available pool of treatable patients," Richter writes. "In the case of infectious diseases such as hepatitis C, curing existing patients also decreases the number of carriers able to transmit the virus to new patients, thus the incident pool also declines."
The bank advises the biotechs to focus on larger disease groups that continue to expand, such as haemophilia, which is growing at around 7 per cent a year, or look at diseases that have complications, such as spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), that affects the sufferer's ability to walk, eat or breathe, or to constantly innovate.

Parliament Question


Dental Health: Children:Written question - 137414

Q
Asked by Steve McCabe
(Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Asked on: 24 April 2018
Department of Health and Social Care
Dental Health: Children
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March to Question 133805, on Dental Health: Children, how many and what proportion of local authorities have (a) toothbrushing programmes and (b) community fluoride varnish schemes; and if he will list the local authorities which have such programmes.
A
Answered by: Steve Brine
Answered on: 27 April 2018
Information on how many and what proportion of local authorities have toothbrushing or community fluoride varnish programmes in place are not held in the format requested.
In England, local authorities are responsible for assessing the oral health needs of their local population, developing oral health strategies and commissioning oral health improvement programmes to meet the needs of their local population.

UK - Shock figures reveal a child's rotten tooth is removed every TEN MINUTES


A Swadlincote dentist is appealing to parents to avoid 'distressing' extractions - after national figures show a child’s rotten tooth is removed every ten minutes.

The shocking figure has been revealed by Public Health England, and has been blamed on 'preventable' tooth decay.

One of the main causes of tooth decay in children is the consumption of too much sugar, according to a dentist from Swadlincote's Delph Dental Practice.

Figures from the health body similarly show that tooth extraction is one of the most common reasons for hospital admissions in children between the ages of five and nine, with roughly 60,000 school days missed a year.

With an average 500ml can of energy drink containing around 13 cubes of sugar, a soft drinks industry levy, or sugar tax, has now been brought into effect by the Government.
Aiming to tackle obesity, producers have to pay 18p a litre if soft drinks have 5g or more of sugar per 100ml, rising up to 24p for 8g of sugar or above.
John Hume-Spry, principal dentist at Delph Dental Practice, in Market Street, Swadlincote believes parents must concentrate on their children's diet, instead of pointing their finger at manufacturers of sugary products.
Mr Hume-Spry said: "Tooth extraction is a very distressing experience for families. I'm not surprised at the figures but it is still shocking.
"I'm afraid it will be down to the children's diet and the amount of sugar they are consuming, but it's not as simple as blaming manufacturers of sugary drinks and sweets."..........................

Newsroom Podcast April 29 – 30,000 hit by CFPUA fluoride spike, half of local treatment centers have issues

This week was too full of stories to tackle just one or two, so we're breaking down four different issues
——This week was a busy mix of breaking news and long-term investigations.
By far, the story impacting the most people was a mechanical failure at a CFPUA groundwater plant that resulted in dangerous levels of fluoride for 30,000 residents in northern New Hanover County. CFPUA scrambled to notify residents, but had little information to share about the incident for days—and some questions still remain..............................

Guardian - Stopping the rot: the distressing condition that makes​ children’s teeth crumble


Each day in England, on average, 141 children enter hospital to have rotten teeth removed, usually under general anaesthetic. They may get a day or so off school, but learning phonics and counting in threes is like a trip to Disneyland in comparison with surgery. Dentists say the rot is preventable in 90% of cases, with dietary habits the obvious culprit. But far more befuddling to modern dentistry is what lies behind the decay in those for whom it isn’t preventable.
Many of these children have what is known, uncatchily, as molar-incisor hypomineralisation (MIH), a condition first recognised in the 80s. It means that the outer enamel on certain teeth does not form properly. Some dentists are reporting a rise in the number of cases they’re seeing, but the condition is still poorly understood. Stephen Fayle, a spokesman for the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry (BSPD), regularly sees the condition in his role as a hospital-based consultant in children’s dentistry in Leeds. He says the data available in the UK suggests that 10% of children are affected. “It’s a considerable, commonly presenting condition,” he says.
When it strikes, MIH affects the first four adult molars, which break through at about six years of age. The condition varies in severity, often with just one tooth affected. But at the most extreme end of the spectrum, a tooth will start crumbling soon after it has erupted. Mild cases will merely incur a slight discoloration. The British Dental Association’s scientific adviser Damien Walmsley says: “The enamel is thinner and softer, and more prone to being dissolved away. The surface allows bacteria to hide in the defects, which means these teeth are more prone to decay.” Fluoride treatments, along with strict brushing and dietary regimes, are the only way to save them.
Even after much academic study, researchers are little the wiser about what causes MIH. Pollution has been suggested, and links have been drawn with, Fayle says, “problems around birth, breathing problems when children have been little, viral infections such as chickenpox. But none of these factors have come out as strongly or very strongly associated with a child having the condition.” However, it is believed that the primary cause is environmental rather than genetic. These molars are formed at birth and undergo a hardening process over the next two or three years; a process Fayle likens to “constructing a sponge and then pumping concrete into it. Something goes wrong, we believe, in those first two years, when that concrete is being pumped in.”However, as any veteran of the bedtime routine will testify, precision tooth-cleaning inside a six-year-old’s mouth is challenging – especially if they have this condition, which, like bad decay, renders affected teeth extremely sensitive. Dental examinations can be unbearable. “They’re only six or seven and have a limited ability to explain what they’re feeling,” says Fayle. “They just don’t like it, and that tends to make them more phobic.”
Dietary deficiencies are unlikely to trigger MIH because you would expect to see a symmetrical effect, whereas this condition has seemingly random coverage. “You can have a tooth on one side that’s perfectly all right and the same tooth on the other side, which developed at exactly the same time, is crumbly.” Even in those with all four affected, one or two will be much worse than the others.
There is an impression, says Fayle, that MIH is a modern disease, but evidence of it has been found in 200- to 300-year-old skeletons. Scandinavian and German researchers have tracked children born in consecutive years, and, rather than charting a steady rise, prevalence goes up and down. “It’s bizarre,” says Fayle. “The worst years had more than twice as many cases as the best years. Nobody can explain that, but it’s almost as if there’s something in the background changing that is making children more susceptible to getting this. It’s a baffling mystery.”
Occasionally, white or yellowish marks also appear on the front adult teeth, but except for rare cases, these only pose a cosmetic problem which, if affecting the child’s wellbeing, can be masked. If a crumbly molar must be removed, all is not lost. “If you get the timing right,” says Fayle, “the second adult molar and wisdom teeth waiting in the gums will usually shunt forwards and take its place.”
But MIH or no MIH, what can parents do to stop the rot? The BSPD is running a “Dental Check by One” campaign, encouraging a dentist visit to check the first teeth as soon as they arrive and ensure parents get the right advice in good time. Dentists believe bad habits start when babies are weaned (12% of children in England have decay at three years). “One of the classic things that parents will do is let children take bottles of milk or juice to bed at night.” At three in the morning, most parents would do anything to get a child back to sleep, but, he says, “once you’ve established that pattern of behaviour, it’s really damaging for the teeth”.
Similarly, letting toddlers carry bottles of juice around all day “is like throwing a bit of petrol on the fire, keeping the decay process going”. Switching to cups instead of bottles and limiting juice to mealtimes helps avoid this. Snacking should be minimised, too, with sweet treats reserved for pudding rather than between meals. “Even things such as crisps that appear to be savoury,” warns Fayle, “stick around your teeth and an enzyme in saliva breaks the starch down to sugar.”
Checking toothpaste has the recommended fluoride levels is also encouraged. For under threes that’s 1000ppm (parts per million), rising to 1350-1500ppm after that. “And the advice now is to spit and not rinse,” says Fayle. By leaving fluoride in your mouth at bedtime, he says, “you’re protecting your teeth and helping them to repair all night”.
Children under three always need an adult to brush for them, but depending on their development, they can start having a go themselves after that. However, it needs to be supervised by the adult up to about age seven, says Fayle.
An exhibition at the Wellcome Collection, Teeth, which opens in London next month, will demonstrate that oral health (just like overall health) has long been a socioeconomic issue. Clare Jones, a lecturer in the history of medicine at the University of Kent, helped put together the exhibition and says: “The north/south divide seems to be particularly stark. In 2012/2013, in north-west England, 33% of five-year-olds had tooth decay, whereas only 20% did in the south-east.” However, her research also highlights how far we have come. “One hundred years earlier, in 1913,” says Jones, “these figures were 80% of children in the north and 60% in the more affluent home counties.”



USA - Why Our Drinking Water Is Killing Us

"Water Fluoridation is the controlled addition of fluoride to a public water supply to reduce tooth decay", according to wikipedia.org. Fluoride happens to be the chemical compound that we find in our toothpaste, processed foods and in our public water supply. Fluoridation became an official policy of the U.S. Public Health Service in 1951 and by 1960, water fluoridation had became widely used in the United States, reaching about 50 million people. According Dr. Joseph Mercola, "If fluoride is really the panacea for dental disease that it's been portrayed as, then why is that the United States is one of the only developed countries that fluoridates their citizen's drinking water?" Dr. Mercola continues to say, "It's not because the other countries aren't aware of fluoride's supposed 'miracle' powers for your teeth..it's because they fully realize that adding a known poison to your population's water supply is probably not a good idea."
Obviously, fluoride isn't the beneficial product that citizens of the United States have been led to believe. Naturally, many people trust in their government and don't believe a chemical that is harmful to people would be distributed into the general population. However, it's one thing to be unaware of the poison you are putting into your body, but it's completely different to be aware of this poison and not take action. According to mercola.com, "Many assume consuming fluoride is only an issue that involves your dental health." But according to a 500 scientific page review, fluoride is an endocrine disruptor that can affect your bones, brain, thyroid gland, pineal gland and even your blood sugar levels.
So a chemical compound that was just intended to prevent tooth decay has many extremely harsh side effects. I remember when I was a kid, my mother always told me not to ever swallow toothpaste because I could get very sick. Back then, I didn't understand the consequences with consuming fluoride.
The Fluoride Action Network (FAN) reported: "Fluorosilicic acid is the most contaminated chemical added to public water supplies, and many impose additional risks to those presented by natural fluorides. These risks include a possible cancer hazard from the acid's elevated arsenic content and a possible neurotoxic hazard from the acid's ability -under some conditions -to increase the erosion of lead from old pipes." So fluorosilicic acid can certainly be labeled a great treat to humankind. Simply put, this chemical can lead to cancer and provides toxins to the brain. The question is, why is something so harmful still in our drinking water? Energyfanatics.com states, "Fluorisilic acid is a waste product of phosphate fertilizer industry and is heavily contaminated with toxins and heavy metals (including the cancerous arsenic, lead and cadmium) and radioactive materials. The website continues to state, "Dr.J. William Hirzy, EPA scientist, is reported to have said, 'If the stuff gets out into the air, it's a pollutant; If it gets into the river, it's a pollutant; if it gets into a lake, it's a pollutant; but if it goes right straight in your drinking water system, it's not a pollutant. That's amazing!'"

Like Odyssey on Facebook

So a product that pollutes the bodies of water on earth and contains cancerous elements is allowed in our public drinking water. Water is essential for human survival and your body needs it to function properly. The body is made up of seventy percent water so the water you put in your body will basically determine your overall health.
"There have been over 34 human studies and 100 animal studies linking fluoride to brain damage," according to the Institute for Vibrant Living, including lower IQ in children. Studies have also shown that fluoride toxicity can lead to a wide variety of health problems including dementia, arthritis, bone fractures, increased tumor and cancer rate, disrupted immune system, bone cancer, genetic damage and so on. Cancer and arthritis are conditions that affect a good percentage of Americans on a daily basis. The fact that our drinking water contains elements that lead to cancer and countless other problems American citizens face on a daily basis is a disrespect to the integrity of people everywhere.
I see countless commercials regarding cancer research and the ongoing fight against cancer, but none of them ever mentioned that our drinking water contributes to the cancer our loved ones face everyday. I can imagine that the average person would never dream that the same water that's suppose to help them is slowing leading them to their own demise. It isn't easy information to swallow. Furthermore, if we wish to eradicate the diseases that plague our human condition, we have to stop putting harmful fluoride in our basic essentials of living. We all have the choice to take action, or do nothing. Fluoride is obviously a threat to human health and needs to be removed.

Sunday, April 29, 2018



Worth seeing again.

Eustace Mullins
American writer
Eustace Clarence Mullins Jr. was an antisemitic American writer, propagandist, Holocaust denier, and disciple of the poet Ezra Pound. Wikipedia
Born: 9 March 1923, Roanoke, Virginia, United States
Died: 2 February 2010, Hockley, Texas, United States
Movement: Neo-fascism, constitutional militia movement
Education: Washington and Lee University, New York University, University of North Dakota
Known for: Antisemitism, Holocaust denial, Conspiracy theory

Saturday, April 28, 2018

USA - CFPUA may offer $5 credit to customers affected by fluoride spike

The incident affected 11,000 customers and more than 29,000 people in northern New Hanover County earlier this week.
WILMINGTON -- A mechanical failure caused a spike in fluoride levels in northern New Hanover County this week that left thousands of people unable to drink their tap water, the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority (CFPUA) announced Friday.
Customers affected may a receive a $5 credit -- enough to pay for about 500 gallons of water -- on an upcoming bill, the release said. The utility’s board is expected to consider the matter, which affected 11,000 customers, at its May 9 board meeting.
Wednesday morning, CFPUA warned customers throughout the northern end of the county served by the Michael E. Richardson Groundwater Treatment Plant to avoid drinking the water because of elevated fluoride levels. The problem resulted in do-not-drink advisories for much of Wednesday and boil-water advisories lasting into Thursday for parts of the area.
CFPUA has, according to the release, started its investigation into how the fluoride entered the water.

While the plant was in an off stage, the utility announced, fluoride “siphoned into stored water,” resulting in the high levels when the plant was turned back on. As soon the high levels were detected, operators shut down operations and stopped pumping water from the plant.
CFPUA announced it will not use the fluoride feed until it has finalized the review, which is expected to occur next week. Fluoride is added to water to prevent tooth decay.
“It is crucial that CFPUA fully understands the cause of the mechanical failure,” the release said, “in order to identify and implement corrective measures to ensure this does not happen again.”

Australia - Letter | Have your say on fluoride before it’s too late

PEOPLE of Oberon, four years ago a compelling number of you stood against the fluoridation of the town’s reticulated water supply.  
Today, it’s back on the agenda.  
At the meeting last week, council voted 5-4 in favour of reviewing its original 2014 decision not to fluoridate. 
Three of your new councillors stated their continuing belief in the official narrative and support fluoridation of your water supply. Four councillors elaborated clearly on why they stand against it. Two did not make their position known, but voted in favour of the review.  
All councillors have been made well aware of the dangers of ingesting industrial grade sodium fluoride and its accompanying contaminants into the human body.  
This debate is not about fluoride’s well-established topical effect of strengthening tooth enamel; but about its toxic, cumulative effect on the rest of the body when ingested, regardless of the amount.  
A reminder: lead, arsenic, mercury and aluminium is included with the industrial grade sodium fluoride intended for your water. It is a waste product from the aluminium phosphate industry.  
This is a fact – no university degree or qualification or ADA/AMA/WHO approval required to know it.  
For those of you who remember the public forum four years ago, the NSW Health representative confirmed this was the product during his presentation.  
There is no safe level to these products in the body, even in trace amounts, as they accumulate in various places and cause a litany of well-established, proven medical problems.  
Does anyone doubt the effects of lead, arsenic, mercury or aluminium on the body anymore? Anyone?
You have two months to appeal to council as to whether you want this in your water or not.   
The council requires your correspondence - be it in electronic, email or hard copy. They need to know how you feel and whether you support it or reject it.  
If you don’t want it, now is the time. If you want to question these facts with them, now is the time.  
If you prefer to take care of your own dental hygiene and that of your children, now is the time.  
Remember, it’s your individual right to choose and consent to such treatment.  
No governing body has the right to take that away from you and unilaterally treat everyone unless you give it away.  
We have two months until they decide. Get along to one of the council’s community engagement meetings scheduled in May and talk to them directly, make your concerns known.  
Send your letters, emails and brush daily.  
Truth will prevail.  

Chris Freeman

F.A.N. Newsletter

Here is some really exciting news.

Because of the wonderful generosity of supporters like you we are very close to reaching our goal of $75,000 a month ahead of schedule. Right now we have reached $71,145 from 433 donors, which means that we will reach our goals with just 67 more donors of any amount.
This $75,000 will then be tripled to $225,000! 
You - and your family members and friends - still have time to be part of our winning team and support FAN's most exciting effort ever*.
How to donate
  • Online at our secure server.

  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Send your check to:
    Fluoride Action Network
    c/o Connett
    104 Walnut Street
    Binghamton NY 13905
 
On behalf of the FAN team, thank you.
Paul and Ellen Connett

* The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) authorizes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to prohibit the “particular use” of a chemical that presents an unreasonable risk to the general public or susceptible subpopulations. TSCA gives EPA the authority to prohibit drinking water additives.
 
The Fluoride Action Network together with Food & Water Watch, American Academy of Environmental Medicine, International Academy of Oral Medicine & Toxicology, Moms Against Fluoridation and others petitioned EPA to exercise its authority to prohibit the purposeful addition of fluoridation chemicals to U.S. water supplies. We made this request on the grounds that a large body of animal, cellular, and human research shows that fluoride is neurotoxic at doses within the range now seen in fluoridated communities.


We have won the first two rounds in Federal Court. The first was the Dec 21, 2017, ruling to allow the case to go forward, thus ending EPA’s effort to dismiss the case. The second ruling on Feb 7, 2018, allows us to enter new studies into consideration, something that EPA argued against.

Friday, April 27, 2018

USA - CFPUA temporarily stops adding fluoride to water at treatment plant

KLTV.com - Tyler, Longview, Jacksonville |ETX News

WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) -
Fluoride will no longer be added to drinking water treated at the Richardson Nano Groundwater Treatment Plant in New Hanover County until an investigation into why levels of the chemical spiked on Wednesday is complete.
According to CFPUA officials, a "do not drink" alert was issued after crews discovered fluoride levels at the plant were at 8 mg/L, which is twice the EPA’s upper legal limit and more than 10 times the recommended level of 0.7 mg/L set by the U.S. Public Health Service.
The "do not drink" alert and a subsequent boil water advisory have been lifted and the water is now safe to drink.
Frank Styers, chief operations officer of CFPUA, said in a phone call Thursday that he is conducting a “deep-dive” investigation into what caused the water treatment plant to overfeed fluoride, which is normally added to prevent tooth decay in the community.
“We have disabled some equipment,” said Styers. “We have a pretty good idea of what caused it, but the investigation is ongoing.”................................

ISRAEL'S FLUORIDATION SUPPLY EXPECTED TO BE RESTORED AFTER THREE YEARS

YA’ACOV LITZMAN
YA’ACOV LITZMAN. (photo credit: YOEL LEVI)
Two years and two months have passed since Health Minister Ya’acov Litzman promised to restore fluoridation – canceled by his predecessor Yael German – of the nation’s water supply.
In the meantime, the dental health of children, especially those in poor families that eat junk food and don’t take care of their teeth properly, has suffered, according to experts....................

Thursday, April 26, 2018

Dr. Paul Connett speaks to Houston residents

On April 14 and 15, Dr. Paul Connett held two informational meetings for the citizens of Houston prior to a public meeting held by the City of Houston to allow public comments on the future of fluoridation in Houston’s municipal water supply. The sessions were held at the University of Missouri Extension office in downtown Houston.
Connett is a nationally recognized expert on the issue of water fluoridation, and the head of the Fluoride Action Network. He has spoken in more than 2,000 presentations in 49 states and 52 countries on the issues of fluoridation and waste management. Prof. Connett holds a B.A. (Honours) in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University, England and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from Dartmouth College.
On April 14, the one-hour meeting ran over two hours as Dr. Connett explained the latest science on fluoride’s adverse health effects, including major concerns about its effects on the brain. There are 59 out of 59 studies that have found an association between fluoride and lowered IQ in children. That includes a very rigorous US Government funded study published last year that found a robust relationship between fluoride exposure to pregnant women and the IQ of their children at the ages of 4 and 6-12 years of age. The study measured fluoride levels in the urine, a measure of TOTAL fluoride exposure from all sources, consistent with the range of adult fluoride exposure in fluoridated areas. The study predicted up to a six IQ point drop. Note that fluoride is NOT naturally present in our body.
Other points made by Connett included the fact that once fluoride is added to the water, you can’t control the dose or who it goes to. Forcing people to swallow fluoride does not make sense. Even the CDC admits that the actions of fluoride in preventing tooth decay are primarily topical.
On April 15, the Extension Office was open for a public debate on fluoride. Although invited, both publicly and privately, none of the fluoride proponents attended, so Dr. Connett continued with his presentation regarding the effects of fluoride on the body, including bone, thyroid and the kidneys. Connett discussed alternatives to fluoridation, including more tooth brushing, more fruits and vegetables and LESS SUGAR.
Before leaving Missouri, Dr. Connett attended and spoke at both the public hearing and City Council meetings in Houston April 16. The jury is still out on whether the Houston City Council members will vote to remove fluoride from the water, but at Dr. Connett’s next stop the following day in Walden, NY, following the Public Hearing on fluoride, the Walden Mayor called for an immediate vote with the council, which voted unanimously to end fluoridation. It can be done.

Northern Echo Letters: Fluoride in water is not the answer to tooth decay problems

AN article titled “Figures spark move to change drinking water”, proposing controversial water-fluoridation for Darlington (Echo, Apr 17) mentioned 1960s findings, without reference to current American research.

The American Dental Association Council on Scientific Affairs now calls on mothers to breast-feed for up to 12 months, and to make up formula with low-fluoride bottled water.

I believe that after nearly 70 years, the Americans are realising mass water-fluoridation was a grievous error, and are now seriously concerned at the prevalence of irreversible fluorosis in children’s teeth, and other health problems.

It seems that fluorine is accessing the population uncontrollably, via routes other than water, with infants at the highest risk. Fluorosis affects poorer children to a greater extent (thus no equality of outcome), and certain communities more than others. We need to educate, not fluoridate. Iceland’s experience validates this mantra, with decay – scores in 12 year-olds dropping from a shocking 6.6 in 1986 to 1.5 in 1996 – a fall of 77 percent, without fluoridation.

M Watson, Darlington

REGARDING your article “Tooth decay sparks move to add fluoride to Darlington’s water” (Echo, Apr 17).

Studies show that the biggest fall in tooth decay is in non-fluoridated Scandinavia.

The chemical used in water fluoridation is fluorosilicic acid.

Top paediatrician, Philip J Landrigan, and Prof Philippe Grandjean at Harvard School of Public Health, reported in The Lancet journal that they’ve classified fluoride as a “developmental neurotoxin” (nerve poison) which can harm children’s IQ.

Scotland has greatly cut tooth decay with its Child Smile scheme where children clean their teeth properly each day in school. Simple, effective, safe and cheap. Water fluoridation is old technology, as most water is used for washing and industry, so most of that fluoride is public money down the drain.

A. Wills, Greater London

Wednesday, April 25, 2018

F.A.N. Newsletter

In Sept 2017, a 12-year rigorous US-government study (Bashash, et al., 2017) confirmed 51 previous studies that links fluoride exposure to lowered IQ in children. This finding should trigger the Precautionary Principle and we urge campaigners to consider bringing it to the attention of your local councilors. But what is this principle?
We wrote a chapter on this in our book The Case Against Fluoride (Connett, Beck and Micklem, Chelsea Green, 2010). Today we share below one of the best definitions we’ve come across. It comes from a UNESCO report on the history of the Precautionary Principle. But first a quick update on our fundraiser.
As of yesterday, we had raised $55,520 from 406 supporters towards our TSCA lawsuit legal fund*. This includes a pledge of $500 for having reached the 400-donor milestone. Another 24 donors – of any amount – will trigger a massive pledge of $5,000 as we edge our way closer and closer to the $75,000, which will be tripled if we reach this goal by May 31. A huge thank you to all who have contributed so far.
Please consider donating today and becoming a member of the team that is taking the Environmental Protection Agency to court* in an attempt to end the deliberate addition of a known neurotoxin into the public drinking water. 

How to donate
  • Online at our secure server.

  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Send your check to:
    Fluoride Action Network
    c/o Connett
    104 Walnut Street
    Binghamton NY 13905

The Precautionary Principle

by UNESCO, 2005,  
(United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization), 2005,
page 14, Box 2
When human activities may lead to morally unacceptable harm that is scientifically plausible but uncertain, actions shall be taken to avoid or diminish that harm. Morally unacceptable harm refers to harm to humans or the environment that is
• threatening to human life or health, or
• serious and effectively irreversible, or
• inequitable to present or future generations, or
• imposed without adequate consideration of the human rights of those affected.
The judgement of plausibility should be grounded in scientific analysis. Analysis should be ongoing so that chosen actions are subject to review. Uncertainty may apply to, but need not be limited to, causality or the bounds of the possible harm.
Actions are interventions that are undertaken before harm occurs that seek to avoid or diminish the harm. Actions should be chosen that are proportional to the seriousness of the potential harm, with consideration of their positive and negative consequences, and with an assessment of the moral implications of both action and inaction. The choice of action should be the result of a participatory process.
 
On behalf of the FAN team, thank you.
Paul and Ellen Connett

* The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) authorizes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to prohibit the “particular use” of a chemical that presents an unreasonable risk to the general public or susceptible subpopulations. TSCA gives EPA the authority to prohibit drinking water additives.
 
The Fluoride Action Network together with Food & Water Watch, American Academy of Environmental Medicine, International Academy of Oral Medicine & Toxicology, Moms Against Fluoridation and others petitioned EPA to exercise its authority to prohibit the purposeful addition of fluoridation chemicals to U.S. water supplies. We made this request on the grounds that a large body of animal, cellular, and human research shows that fluoride is neurotoxic at doses within the range now seen in fluoridated communities.


We have won the first two rounds in Federal Court. The first was the Dec 21, 2017, ruling to allow the case to go forward, thus ending EPA’s effort to dismiss the case. The second ruling on Feb 7, 2018, allows us to enter new studies into consideration, something that EPA argued against.

Shock new figures reveal the scary amount of sugar in your kids yoghurts






Experts from across public health teams have sent warnings out to parents after finding yoghurts could contain up to FIVE sugar cubes in one serving.

Medics say some yoghurts could send children over their daily sugar limit in just one serving.

NHS guidelines say children aged between four and six should have no more than 19g or five cubes of free sugar (sugar not 'locked in' naturally to products) a day, while seven-to-10-year-olds should have no more than six cubes.

Public Health Liverpool first brought it to national attention and is to highlight its findings with a media campaign across health centres, dentists' surgeries, children's centres and hospitals over the coming months.

Dr Sandra Davies, Liverpool's director of public health, said: "Tackling sugar in diets is a real priority for us because we know that people simply don't realise how much they are consuming.

"If we are to stand any chance of tackling this ticking time bomb, we must give parents as much information as possible so they can make informed decisions.

I'm an environmental scientist: What every dental hygienist should know about fears over fluoride


'It can be really easy to come away with a false impression that EPA and CDC
are at odds with each other about fluoride when, in fact, they both agree that
fluoride is beneficial in water at low levels and is unhealthy if it is too high.'

By Effie Greathouse, PhD
Much confusion and misinformation floats around out there about fluoride and fluoridation—and a significant amount of that confusion is environmentally-minded. Lots of people are scared about fluoride being toxic. Memes characterizing fluoridation and fluoride products as hazardous waste and part of an industrial pollution scheme have been persistent since the discovery of fluoride’s role in caries prevention in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.
In my opinion, as an environmental scientist turned fluoride science enthusiast, the confusion isn’t just because of conspiracy theorists........


Nys Cof
You wrote a lot of words to say relatively little.  The turth is that both proponents and opponents of fluoridation agree that too much fluoride is a bad thing.  Adding fluoride chemicals into public water supplies allows an unknown quantity of fluoride to flow into our bodies from  water supplies and foods made with that fluoridated water.  As a result, about 60% of adolescents are afflicted with dental fluorosis.  Dentists make a good living covering up fluoride-damaged teeth.  This also enables them to shun low income folks whose insurance or pocketbooks won't give them the cash they so desire.  As a result millions of Americans are suffering with oral health that looks like they are from third world countries.  It's time to stop throwing fluoride chemicals at the problem of untreated tooth decay.  Either mandate that dentists treat all who seek it or legalize dental therapists who will go into mouths and areas where dentists refuse to go.