Health chiefs plan 'myth-buster' over plans to extend fluoridation of water supply in Northumberland

Health chiefs are set to develop a ‘myth-buster’ ahead of consultation on plans to extend the fluoridation of Northumberland’s water supply to tackle tooth decay.

A map showing the areas of Northumberland covered by the existing fluoridation scheme (in blue) and one showing the areas proposed to be covered by the extension (in green). Picture from Northumberland County Council

In October, the county council’s cabinet agreed to consult the Health Secretary, following confirmation from Northumbrian Water the proposal put forward to vary the county’s current fluoridation scheme is ‘operable, efficient and technically possible to implement’.

An update to a meeting of the council’s health and wellbeing board revealed that the Secretary of State’s consent to proceed has been received and an ‘active listening exercise’ is to start next week, ahead of a full public consultation later this year.

Community water fluoridation ensures that, where the natural fluoride concentration is too low to provide dental health benefits, it is raised to and maintained at the optimal level of one part per million, or one milligram per litre.

However, despite a wide body of scientific and medical evidence, water fluoridation is the focus of vociferous opponents, with Coun Wayne Daley referring to emails containing ‘fake news’, such as it being a deliberate attempt to make people ‘lethargic and obese’.

He called for a myth-buster to be produced as part of the engagement with the public, with health representatives on the board, such as GP Dr Jane Lothian and Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust’s Claire Riley, agreeing a single, simple message was needed.

Liz Morgan, the council’s director of public health, said: “The view of organisations from the World Health Organisation down to the local dental committee is that water fluoridation is safe and effective.”

Northumberland’s current scheme covers areas in the former Alnwick district as well as in the west of the county. Further north is part of the existing scheme, but has not been receiving fluoridated water since the mid-2000s due to infrastructure failure; its restoration is being progressed by Public Health England.

Therefore some of Northumberland’s least-deprived communities are receiving fluoridated water, while some of the most deprived are not, with oral health an area where ‘inequalities are really quite profound’.

The proposed extension would cover an area in the south-east of the county, from Blyth out to Bedlington and Morpeth and up the coast to Amble.

The scheme would more than double the number of Northumberland’s households which have fluoridated water, leaving just 4.2% – or around 14,500 residents – without.

In the North East, the lowest rates of dental decay in children are found in areas with fluoridated water, whether natural or artificial, because fluoride increases teeth’s resistance against the effects of sugar.

A Public Health England study also showed every £1 invested in water fluoridation brings a £12.71 return after five years, far higher than other programmes like fluoride varnishing or posting/handing out toothbrushes and toothpaste.

The capital costs of the proposed extension, for the plant and equipment etc, is around £2.15million, which would fall to the Department of Health and Social Care. The annual running costs would be between £85,000 and £110,000 (although possibly up to £182,000) and would be covered by the county council’s existing public health grant.