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UK Against Fluoridation

Thursday, December 31, 2020

F.A.N. Newsletter

 First, on behalf of the whole FAN team we would like to wish all our supporters and their families a very happy and safe New Year. We would also like to thank all who have donated so generously to help fund our efforts to end fluoridation. The best way we can reward your continued confidence in our legal, organizational and educational efforts will be to win the TSCA trial in 2021. Some news on that now.

Our Federal Court TSCA trial against the EPA will resume on Jan 7, 2021. We will publish the details on how to join the zoom call early next week. Meanwhile, yesterday, working with Jay Sanders Michael selected more excerpts from the videotaped testimony of CDC…. And puts the testimony into context. Here is his new video:

Looking for a cartoonist. One of our favorite cartoons – which we used again this year - is of the little frog strangling a heron while being swallowed: “Never Give Up!” We are looking for a cartoonist to do a happy sequel to this cartoon: a happy frog sitting safely on the ground with the frustrated and defeated heron flying away. Any takers? We would like to use this for new Year’s Day and for any other victory we achieve in 2021. We would be happy to have more than one to share with you.  Meanwhile, we found this on the internet:

We do not have the name of the photographer and if anyone knows please let us know.  Meanwhile, in our fundraiser we are still some way from our goal of raising $120,000 for our 2021 budget by midnight (PT) tonight, but like the little frog, we are "hanging on."

An update on our fundraiser. We had the best day yesterday of the whole fundraiser.  Our current totals stand at $82,006 from 557 supporters.

Our sixth super-angel has agreed to double all donations up to a total of $500 today and will add another $500 if we can reach 600 supporters by midnight (PT) tonight. So please consider making donations in the names of other friends and family members. Remember all donations are tax-deductible in the USA, so please consider giving a contribution to FAN instead of uncle Sam!

How to Make a Tax-Deductible Donation

  • Online, using our secure server.
     
  • If you should experience difficulty in donating online please email: Ellen@fluoridealert.org
     
  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Mail your check to:

Fluoride Action Network
c/o Connett
104 Walnut Street
Binghamton NY 13905

News on the premiums and auctions:

  1. The highest bid for the last remaining pack of “50 Reasons” to be signed by designer Chris Neurath is $1006. Bids close at 4 pm (NYT) and the winner will be announced at our FAN zoom party at 5 pm (NYT) today (details below). Your bid should end in 6, $16, 26, ….
  2. The highest bid for the CD of Beethoven’s last three piano sonatas played by The Case Against Fluoride co-author Spedding Micklem is $504.  Bids close at 4 pm (NYT) and the winner will be announced at our FAN zoom party at 5 pm (NYT) today (details below). Bids should end in 4 (i.e. $14, 24…).
  3. No bids yet for the two remaining coffee mugs sporting the legend “Fluoride: Not in My Coffee.” To identify your bid for these items your donation should end in 3 (see above).
  4. Any bid of $7, 17, 27, 37 etc. will secure you a signed copy (by Paul Connett) of the book The Case Against Fluoride
  5. Any bid of $8, 18, 28, 38 etc. will secure you a copy of the book The Zero Waste Solution, signed by Paul Connett.

Please note these book offers only apply at these prices to the USA. If you live outside the USA and wish to receive one of these books please negotiate a price with Ellen at Ellen@FluorideALERT.org

TONIGHT: New Years Eve Zoom Party

Save the Zoom call-in details below, TONIGHT is FAN's virtual New Years Even party.

Topic: FAN New Years Eve Party

Time: Dec 31, 2020 05:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting Link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85158401363

Meeting ID: 851 5840 1363

Passcode: fan

Dial for phone audio only. Find your local number:
https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kArAbNd5i

Below are “fighting fluoride” words to several well-known songs provided to us by Dr. Bruce Spittle who will be joining us from NZ with his guitar to lead us in couple of these. Won’t it be fun to sing with each other around the world. And don’t we need some fun?

Thank you, 

Paul Connett, PhD
(for the rest of the FAN Fundraising team (Carol B, Chris, Dawna, Ellen, Jay and Stuart) and our five super-angels)

Future of fluoride in Calgary remains up in the air in 2021

 Water fluoridation has been a long and contentious debate in Calgary for many years, and it’s a question that could be posed to Calgarians in the new year.

In early December, a city committee received a presentation and report on how much it would cost to re-introduce fluoride back into the city’s water system.

City administration has pegged those costs at $30.1 million over a 20-year life span, but said the capital costs could be absorbed by the water utility, which wouldn’t require an increase to water rates.

“It would have no impact whatsoever on property taxes and you would amortize the cost over many years,” Mayor Naheed Nenshi said following the meeting.

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

A Wills Newsletter

Daily Mail 29.12.20  “WHY COMMON ANTIBIOTICS MAY TRIGGER MENTAL BREAKDOWNS”  By Pat Hagan.

Becky Goodwin, 30, waved goodbye to her husband & children as they went for a walk, but as soon as they’d gone she contemplated killing herself.  Her story is not one of gradual psychiatric decline - she went from a happy, healthy wife & mother to being consumed by hopelessness in just 3 months, owing - she believes – to the prescribed antibiotic doxycycline.  Earlier in 2020 Alana Cutland, 19-year-old Cambridge Uni student, jumped to her death after taking doxycycline for 11 days.  At the inquest, Coroner Tom Osborne concluded that the drug was to blame.  He had consulted experts investigating doxycycline’s effects on mental health.  In Nov .2020, Mr Osborne wrote to the  MHRA safety body, asking it to do a review of doxycycline & the risk of suicidal thoughts. They are now probing this. Scientists at Augusta Uni in Georgia USA, carried out one of the largest studies on this.  They trawled though 8 years of data from FDA’s Adverse Event Reporting System.  The study found over 6,000 reports of side-effects of all kinds from doxycycline -  91 included psychosis or hallucinations.  Doxycycline was not the only antibiotic linked with sudden & severe psychiatric problems.  At least 14 other antibiotics showed an increased risk of these.  Included was a class of the drugs called FLUOROQUINOLONES (containing fluoride) previously highlighted for tendon damage, joint pain & memory loss.  These drugs include floxacin & levofloxacin.  The US study revealed 1,122 cases of psychosis in patients on fluoroquinolones - more than double the number seen with minocycline, a drug widely used for acne.  The worse was clarithromycin antibiotic, used for chest & ear infections.  Of 18,000 adverse events reported from it, about 700 involved psychotic episodes.  One theory is that the drugs trigger interactions with neurotransmitter brain chemicals. Prof David Healy, a psychiatrist consulted in the Alana Cutland case, first raised concerns about potential harmful effects of doxycycline in 2013, when he was professor of psychiatry at Bangor Uni. 

F.A.N. Newsletter

To put this treat into perspective will need a little explanation. Although, I am a classical music and jazz enthusiast, the sum total of my musical performing ability is playing “Pop Goes the Weasel” on a child’s xylophone – memorized by numbers when I was eleven. But I have a very large CD collection. Thus, I am in awe when I am able to hear real musicians play the music I love. We are very lucky that we have a wonderful cellist living in the apartment upstairs (and I am hoping he will play us a short piece on our FAN zoom call party on Dec 31 (5 pm NYC time, details below). 

Now imagine my thrill, when I finally got to meet one of the co-authors of the book, “The Case Against Fluoride…” (Spedding Micklem) when I visited him in his home in Edinburgh and found that he was a very fine piano player. In our latest visit in 2019 Ellen and I heard him play pieces by Beethoven and Schumann. It was a lovely and moving experience.

Now the special treat. I asked Spedding if he would send us (via email) a recording of a short piece that we could share with FAN supporters. He sent this piece by Chopin called “Berceuse” (meaning lullaby). It is only 4 minutes and 40 seconds in length, and even if you are not a classical music enthusiast, I think you will enjoy this beautiful and peaceful piece.  

Click on the picture to hear the audio clip (you may need a Google account):

Now the special premium which we will put up for auction. Spedding has only made one CD (see picture below). It is of Beethoven’s last three piano Sonatas (# 30, 31 and 32). I love this recording. Spedding will send a signed copy of this CD to the highest bid we receive by 4 pm Dec 31 (so we can announce the winner on our zoom call). For identification purposes please end your donation/bid with a 4 – i.e. $14, 24, 34……etc.

Another premium which we will auction today and tomorrow.  When Ellen was going through previous premiums, she found that we had just two coffee mugs left (they bear the legend – Fluoride: Not In My Coffee). John Mueller from Oklahoma was holding up one of these mugs in yesterday’s slideshow. We do not expect to be making any more of these mugs so it could be a collector’s item. Ellen and I will also sign them. To make a bid, send a donation ending in 3 – i.e. 3, 13, 23, etc. The mugs will go to the two highest bidders by 4 pm on Dec 31. Again, we will announce the winners at FAN’s Zoom party.

New Years Eve FAN Zoom Party

Please mark your calendars and save the Zoom call-in details below, though we will also send out a reminder on New Years Eve:

Topic: FAN New Years Eve Party

Time: Dec 31, 2020 05:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting Link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85158401363

Meeting ID: 851 5840 1363

Passcode: fan

Dial for phone audio only. Find your local number:
https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kArAbNd5i

Fundraising Update & New Premiums

After another good day we have reached a total of $74,651 from 531 supporters in our quest to raise $120,000 from 1000 supporters by midnight (PT) Dec 31.

All donations will be doubled today up to a total of $500. We know this is a very difficult situation for many at this horrible time and we are grateful for any donation large or small. All donations are tax-deductible in the USA. Thank you everyone for everything you are doing to end this wretched practice.

How to Make a Tax-Deductible Donation

  • Online, using our secure server.
     
  • If you should experience difficulty in donating online please email: Ellen@fluoridealert.org
     
  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Mail your check to:

Fluoride Action Network
c/o Connett
104 Walnut Street
Binghamton NY 13905

Thank you, 

Paul Connett, PhD
(for the rest of the FAN Fundraising team (Carol B, Chris, Dawna, Ellen, Jay and Stuart) and our five super-angels)

 

Tuesday, December 29, 2020

Fluoride in water cripples many, Agra village residents rue apathy

 By Brij Khandelwal

Agra, Dec 29 : Amid all talks of development in India in the 21 century, hundreds of residents of Pachgai Patti village — just a few kilometres from the iconic 17th century monument of love, Taj Mahal — are still forced to lead the lives of cripples in the absence of safe potable drinking water.

These villagers move around with crooked limbs or with other physical deformities due to the ill-effects of excess fluoride in underground water they are forced to consume and use it for other routine chores as they have no other alternative.

The village, situated in Agra district, is said to have the dubious distinction of reporting maximum number of disabled persons from the area. More than seven decades after Independence, this village with a population of more than a 1,000 faces shortage of potable drinking water.

For the past several days now, the villagers have been on a relay fast to demand piped Ganga Jal, which is planned to be supplied to the neighbouring urban clusters on the Shamshabad Road.

Advocate Girish Chandra Sharma, who is leading the agitators, told IANS that the underground water in the entire area is affected by fluoride and thus highly toxic for human consumption.

“A large number of people have fallen victims to the malady, leading to their physical deformities. Many cannot even walk straight,” he pointed out..................

F.A.N. Newsletter

 When you get into a major fundraiser sometimes everything is dominated by money and we forget that the heart of our campaign is not money but people. If we had to pay people for all they did – and have done for so many years – we wouldn’t be talking about thousands we would be talking about billions. So in this bulletin we are taking our hats off to our supporters – to you.

We do not have governmental agencies pushing our case (actually all we want them to do is their jobs and follow the science); we are not bankrolled by huge special interests and we don’t have the media regurgitating our press releases. – or heaven forbid – doing their own research! No, what FAN has is a solid scientific team that is on top of the literature, that has built a case strong enough to take to US federal court; and a professional team that brings this case to you in numerous ways. That’s where the real work happens.

Hats off to all those who listen to and read what we send out and educate themselves in other ways; who write letters, who speak with friends, neighbors, doctors, dentists  and representatives, who organize groups, who hold meetings, press conferences, who go to rallies, organize marches, hold placards, design posters, write and sing songs, dress up, make us laugh, who have fun, get their kids involved; who use every ounce of their creativity to fight the biggest uphill battle any government (and there are not many) has forced on its own people. Hats off to all of you: You are the ones who don’t give up; you are the heart and soul of our campaign. You are why we do this. You represent all of our children, our grandchildren, and all our futures.

We are celebrating you in two ways, today we are sharing part 2 of our campaign photo slideshow, and on Thursday, Dec 31 at 5 pm (NYC time) we are holding a zoom call where we can all see each other; share stories; photos, maybe a few songs - if you have a musical instrument have it at the ready - let's have fun together - we deserve it!

Campaign Photo Slideshow #2: Campaign Locally, Communicate Globally:

New Years Eve FAN Zoom Party

Please mark your calendars and save the Zoom call-in details below, though we will also send out a reminder as we get closer to New Years Eve:

Topic: FAN New Years Eve Party

Time: Dec 31, 2020 05:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting Link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85158401363

Meeting ID: 851 5840 1363

Passcode: fan

Dial for phone audio only. Find your local number:
https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kArAbNd5i

Fundraising Update & New Premiums

Yesterday was a great day for us considering the difficult financial times we are in - we raised over $5000 from 32 donors. This was so successful that our super-angel has decided to repeat his challenge of doubling every donation - and tripling every donation from Vermont - up to a total of $500. A second super-angle will then double from there up to a total of $1000. Today's the day to make a contribution large or small and donations are deductible. Wouldn't you rather your money went to FAN rather than Uncle Sam?

PREMIUMS: Our premium of the set of packing cards featuring the 50 Reasons went like "hot cakes" on Saturday. We have only one deck left - and since that is the last mint copy available we have decided to auction this last pack (signed by its designer Chris Neurath) to the highest bidder by Midnight (ET) Dec 30. Your bid must end in $6 - so we know who is bidding! If you want to be certain that your bid has been recorded, email Paul at: Paul@FluorideALERT.org 

As of this morning, the highest bid on this collector's item is $1006 - yes we were amazed too! We doubt if this will be topped. We will announce the winner on the zoom call Dec 31. For those with unsuccessful bids please choose from the books below. Just let Paul know at: Paul@fluorideALERT.org which book (signed) or both you want.

We are also offering a copy of the book '"The Case Against Fluoride..." signed by co-author Paul Connett for any donations ending in $7 i.e.  $7,17, 27, 37...107.

And a copy of Paul's book on waste management for a sustainable future: "The Zero Waste Solution..." (also signed) for any donation ending in 8 - i.e. $8, 18, 28 and so on.

Just a few things we have thought up to help us achieve the impossible task of reaching $120,000 from 1000 supporters by midnight Dec 31.  Any donation large or small will make you part of our winning team.  All donations are tax-deductible in the USA.

Currently, our fundraiser totals are $69,871 from 507 supporters.

Thank you, 

Paul Connett, PhD
(for the rest of the FAN Fundraising team (Carol B, Chris, Dawna, Ellen, Jay and Stuart) and our five super-angels)

How to Make a Tax-Deductible Donation

  • Online, using our secure server.
     
  • If you should experience difficulty in donating online please email: Ellen@fluoridealert.org
     
  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Mail your check to:

Fluoride Action Network
c/o Connett
104 Walnut Street
Binghamton NY 13905


Monday, December 28, 2020

F.A.N. Newsletter

 Well it took us 26 days to get half-way to our target of $120,000 by midnight Dec 31, which leaves just FOUR more days to raise the other half! That would seem an impossible task but we have done other impossible things before - not least getting the terrible practice of fluoridation to Federal court!

CHALLENGES: We will have some help from our super-angels. The first will double donations today up to a total of $500 and will triple donations from Vermont. A second has pledged to throw in another $200 when we reach 500 donors. 

PREMIUMS: Our premium of the set of packing cards featuring the 50 Reasons went like "hot cakes" on Saturday. We have only one deck left - and since that is the last mint copy available we have decided to auction this last pack (signed by its designer Chris Neurath) to the highest bidder by Midnight (ET) Dec 30. Your bid must end in $6 - so we know who is bidding! If you want to be certain that your bid has been recorded, email Paul at Paul@FluorideALERT.org We will announce the winner on Dec 31.

We are also offering a copy of the book '"The Case Against Fluoride..." signed by co-author Paul Connett for any donations ending in $7 i.e.  $7,17, 27, 37...107.

And a copy of Paul's book on waste management for a sustainable future: "The Zero Waste Solution..." (also signed) for any donation ending in 8 - i.e. $8, 18, 28 and so on.

Just a few things we have thought up to help us achieve the impossible task of reaching $120,000 from 1000 supporters by midnight Dec 31. And all of this to help end fluoridation in 2021. The "impossible" is in our sights; please help us to finish the job. No donation is too small and all donations are tax-deductible

Currently we are at $64,453 from 472 supporters.

Thank you, 

Paul Connett, PhD
(for the rest of the FAN Fundraising team (Carol B, Chris, Dawna, Ellen, Jay and Stuart) and our five super-angels)

How to Make a Tax-Deductible Donation

  • Online, using our secure server.
     
  • If you should experience difficulty in donating online please email: Ellen@fluoridealert.org
     
  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Mail your check to:

Fluoride Action Network
c/o Connett
104 Walnut Street
Binghamton NY 13905

Sunday, December 27, 2020

A Wills newsletter

 Mail on Sunday 27.12.20  “INFECTED BLOOD ‘ONE OF THE UK’S BIGGEST SCANDALS’”

The contaminated blood scandal which infected tens of 1,000s of NHS patients with hepatitis C & HIV will be a disaster bigger than Hillsborough, says Dame Denise Platt, a General Medical Council board member.  She likened it to the 1989 stadium crush that killed 96 people.  Her comments were disclosed in internal emails at the GMC which is co-ordinating doctors’ submissions to the blood scandal Inquiry.   Over 2,400 people with haemophilia died after being given a clotting agent - “Factor 8”, which was infected with deadly viruses hepatitis C & HIV in 1970s & 1980s.  Campaigners claim documents that would reveal the true scale of the medical blunders have been destroyed.  Her comments emerged in an email sent to colleagues by Thomas Jones, GMC’s head of regulation policy, & obtained under Freedom of Information laws.  Jason Evans of “Factor 8” campaign group said “For decades governments of all stripes have attempted to play down the scandal hoping it will go away.”  The Inquiry which began in 2018, is expected to conclude in late 2021.

(My comment:  Edward Priestley of Yorkshire is not a haemophiliac but caught incurable hepatitis C from infected NHS blood transfusions in 1986which ruined his health & career.  The UK Dept of Health bought cheap blood from USA drug addicts, prisoners & sex workers & the blood was not screened or heat-treated.   Edward suffered greatly, but manages to survive by avoiding toxic chemicals such as fluoride, & eating organic to avoid pesticides.)  Ann

Saturday, December 26, 2020

F.A.N. Newsletter

 We hope all our supporters had an enjoyable and relaxing Christmas day.  At this end it is back to business, as we enter the most important few days of our fundraiser. We have the very daunting task of trying to reach a total of $120,000 by midnight  Dec 31. 

Fluoridation is "A House of Cards waiting to Fall...and you can play a hand in its downfall."

That was a slogan we used a few years ago when we launched a pack of playing cards which featured all 50 Reasons (plus two) Against Fluoridation (plus two jokers; the ADA and the CDC). This was a very popular premium. Chris Neurath, who designed the pack tells us that he has 25 packs still in his possession. In the final six days of our annual fundraiser we are going to make these remaining packs available for any donation ending in 6 ($ 6, 16, 26, 36 and so on) on a 'first come first served' basis (limit one pack to each family).

Thank you to all who have donated so far  - at this very difficult time - to bring our current totals to $58,733 from 412 supporters.  One of our super-angels will double donations today up to a total of $500.

Thank you, 

Paul Connett, PhD
Executive Director

How to Make a Tax-Deductible Donation

  • Online, using our secure server.
     
  • If you should experience difficulty in donating online please email: Ellen@fluoridealert.org
     
  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Mail your check to:

Fluoride Action Network
c/o Connett
104 Walnut Street
Binghamton NY 13905

Thursday, December 24, 2020

F.A.N. Newsletter

The Team at FAN wishes all of our supporters a Merry Christmas, a belated happy Hanukkah, a wonderful holiday no matter what you celebrate during this season, and a most healthy New Year.

The word "merry" at this time kind of sticks in the throat. How can we be merry at a time when so many people are losing their livelihoods, their homes and even their lives?  But I am reminded of that the story of a Christmas day during the worst of all wars (World War I) when both sides laid down their arms and sang carols together in No Man's Land. A recognition perhaps of the difference between the immediate and the eternal. 

We wish all our supporters a truce: a time to reflect on the eternal joy in their lives and the friendships which last a lifetime and beyond. Those friendships continue to inform and sustain our movement.  Enjoy Christmas Day.


(Click on picture for a special holiday video from FAN)

On the fundraiser front, yesterday brought us to a total of $57,038 from 386 supporters.  While it's a long way from where we had hoped to be at this point in our challenging task of raising $120,000 by midnight Dec 31, we have had some very good news today: another super-angel has pledged to DOUBLE the next $500 donated! 

We are also only 14 more donations away from receiving $200 for reaching the 400 supporter milestone.  $60,000 is in our sights.

Thank you all who have donated to our work during this difficult time.  Please enjoy Christmas day as lonely as it might be for some.  Our hearts go out to all those who have lost loved ones during the last year.

See you all again on Dec 26.

Thank you, 

Paul Connett
Executive Director

How to Make a Tax-Deductible Donation

  • Online, using our secure server.
     
  • If you should experience difficulty in donating online please email: Ellen@fluoridealert.org
     
  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Mail your check to:

Fluoride Action Network
c/o Connett
104 Walnut Street

Binghamton NY 13905 

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

F.A.N. Newsletter

Today we have a happy and special bulletin as we head into the Christmas holiday.  We looked through our photo archives and put together a slideshow featuring pictures of campaigners and campaigns from around the world over the past decade or so.  The theme is: Campaign Locally, Communicate Globally.  While campaigners are usually focused on the local fluoridation battle going on in their own community, this slideshow is a reminder that we are many, we are strong, and we are on every corner of the fluoridated world.

As you watch the video, keep an eye out for yourself.  If you don't see one of your campaign photos, please send them to: stuart@fluoridealert.org  We would like share a second slideshow closer to New Years Day featuring any photos that weren't included in today's collection.  Please enjoy our 5-minute trip around the ever-shrinking fluoridated world:  

Fundraising Update

Please help FAN continue our work supporting and initiating local fluoride-free campaigns around the world in 2021.  No donation is too large (!) or too small.

Our current totals are $56,603 from 376 supporters. We are still rather short of both our goals with only a few days to go before our deadline of midnight Dec 31. All donations are tax-deductible.

How to Make a Tax-Deductible Donation:

  • Online, using our secure server.
     
  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Mail your check to:

Fluoride Action Network
c/o Connett
104 Walnut Street
Binghamton NY 13905
 

Thank you, 

Stuart Cooper
Campaign Director
Fluoride Action Network

 

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

 It is well known that the dental profession has been largely trapped by the paradigm of the “safety and effectiveness” of water fluoridation – and has been since the practice was first endorsed by the US Public Health Service in 1950. Less well known is the shield other disciplines, including the medical profession, have provided for this unethical and outdated practice. Former EPA risk assessor Bill Hirzy said it best,

‘They are riding a tiger and can’t get off.’
The Ecologist, 18 June, 2008

Today we provide a surprising and shocking example from researchers within one such discipline: pediatrics.

In our view, what we have here is a very upsetting betrayal of the public’s trust. Surely, the one place parents should find honesty and transparency is in a medical discipline which deals with protecting the health of the developing infant. If you can’t rely on your baby’s doctor to give sound medical advice on its diet and well-being who can you rely on? In turn, busy pediatricians should be able to rely on the information provided by researchers who publish in pediatric journals, as well as the editors who vet those articles for accuracy.

This did not happen in the case of the article Fluoride Use in Caries Prevention in the Primary Care Setting authored by Clark et al. and published in Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, on November 30, 2020. Not only have the authors let their profession and the public down but so have the editors who approved this article.

Because my work with FAN involves managing our StudyTracker, NewsTracker, IQ studies, Government reports, FAN submissions, Mother-Offspring studies, NTP studies, TSCA trial, etc., I came across this article. I was shocked by its conclusions and did some research on the authors.

I found another article with the same title, published in the same journal in 2014, and with the same lead author.

In the table below is a comparison between key quotes from the article in question published in 2020 and the 2014 article. Very little has changed in these key passages over a space of 6 years but as most of our readers know, a huge amount has changed in fluoride research on the harms caused by fluoride, particularly fluoride’s neurotoxicity. None of this important research is acknowledged even though one study was published in 2019 in a journal well known to every pediatrician – JAMA Pediatrics (the Journal of the American Medical Association).

August 2014

Fluoride use in caries prevention in the
primary care setting
.

December 2020

Fluoride Use in Caries Prevention in the
Primary Care Setting

Authors:
Melinda B. Clark, MD, FAAP
 

and


Rebecca L. Slayton, DDS, PhD

 

Affiliations not listed

 

Authors:

Melinda B. Clark, MD, FAAP
Dept. of Pediatrics, Albany Medical Center, NY

Martha Ann Keels, DDS, PhD
Dept. of Surgery and Pediatrics, Duke U., Durham NC; The Adams School of Dentistry, U. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Rebecca L. Slayton, DDS, PhD
Dept. of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry, U. of Washington, Seattle WA

 

“Despite overwhelming evidence supporting the safety [no reference given] and preventive benefits of fluoridated water, community water fluoridation continues to be a controversial and highly emotional issue. Opponents express a number of concerns, all of which have been addressed or disproven by validated research [no references given]. The only scientifically documented adverse effect of excess (nontoxic) exposure to fluoride is fluorosis.”

 

 “Despite overwhelming evidence supporting the safety [no reference given] and preventive benefits of fluoridated water, community water fluoridation continues to be a controversial and highly emotional issue. Opponents express a number of concerns that have been addressed or disproven by validated research [no references given]. The only scientifically documented adverse effect of excess (nontoxic) exposure to fluoride is fluorosis.”

 

Finally, there have been many unsubstantiated or disproven claims [no reference given] that fluoride leads to kidney disease, bone cancer, and compromised IQ. More than 3000 studies or research papers have been published on the subject of fluoride or fluoridation.39 [the reference, also used in their 2020 paper, was published in 2007.] Few topics have been as thoroughly researched, and the overwhelming weight of the evidence—in addition to 68 years of experience—supports the safety and effectiveness of this public health practice.

Finally, there have been many unsubstantiated or disproven claims [no reference given] that fluoride leads to kidney disease, bone cancer, and compromised IQ. More than 3000 studies or research articles have been published on the subject of fluoride or fluoridation.47 [the reference, also used in their 2014 paper, was published in 2007.] Few topics have been as thoroughly researched as community water fluoridation, and the overwhelming weight of the evidence (along with over 75 years of experience) supports the safety and effectiveness of this public health practice.

 

Reference 39
Cheng KK, Chalmers I, Sheldon TA.
Adding fluoride to water supplies.
BMJ. 2007;335 (7622):699–702

Reference 47
Cheng KK, Chalmers I, Sheldon TA.
Adding fluoride to water supplies.
BMJ. 2007;335 (7622):699–702

 

What happened in the intervening years between the first article in 2014 and the second article in 2020?

From 2015 to 2020, 23 of the 67 studies associating fluoride exposure with lowered IQ in children were published, including three funded by the U.S. government. The studies merited no mention or words of caution in Clark et al.’s 2020 paper. Except for a few insignificant word changes in the 2020 article, the conclusions were the same.

Clark et al. stated in both papers:                                     

… there have been many unsubstantiated or disproven claims [no references given] that fluoride leads to kidney disease, bone cancer, and compromised IQ … and the overwhelming weight of the evidence [no references given] … supports the safety and effectiveness of this public health practice.

The three authors of the 2020 paper made no mention of the following:

  • The National Toxicology Program’s (NTP) systematic risk assessment of fluoride’s neurotoxicty, was publicly released in October 2019, one full year before Clark et al.’s 2020 paper. NTP concluded “fluoride is presumed to be a cognitive neurodevelopmental hazard to humans.” It was peer reviewed by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) which recommended various changes. The NTP released a second draft in 2020 with the same conclusion. It is currently undergoing a second peer review by the NASEM.
     
  • The three Mother-Offspring fluoride studies funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) reported reduced IQ in children at exposure levels found in fluoridated communities (0.7 ppm fluoride) are: Bashash et al. 2017Green et al. 2019Till et al. 2020 (released in Nov 2019).
     
  • No health risk assessment has ever been performed by any regulatory agency from the 1945-2020 for fluoride exposure to pregnant women, the fetus, or to formula fed-infants living in fluoridated communities.

How could the editors of this journal (Pediatrics), or the authors of the 2020 paper, be so uninformed when the Green et al. (2019) study appeared under their noses in the world’s leading pediatrics journal, JAMA Pediatrics?

The authors referenced this study in their 2014 & 2020 papers:

Under the section “Evidence Supporting Community Water Fluoridation” there are no references to the safety of fluoridation. The authors state, “The only scientifically documented adverse effect of excess (nontoxic) exposure to fluoride is fluorosis [no reference given].” The authors did add a reference to this statement, “More than 3000 studies or research papers have been published on the subject of fluoride or fluoridation.39”

What the referenced study actually said:

The 2007 report by Cheng et al., in the British Medical Journal was titled Adding fluoride to water supplies. Here are some excerpts:

… Given the certainty with which water fluoridation has been promoted and opposed, and the large number (around 3200) of research papers identified,9 the reviewers were surprised by the poor quality of the evidence and the uncertainty surrounding the beneficial and adverse effects of fluoridation.

… Water fluoridation aims to reduce social inequalities in dental health,10 but few relevant studies exist. The quality of research was even lower than that assessing overall effects of fluoridation. The results were inconsistent—fluoridation seemed to reduce social inequalities in children aged 5 and 12 when measured by the number of decayed, missing, or filled teeth, but not when the proportion of 5 year olds with no caries was used.

… evidence on the potential benefits and harms of adding fluoride to water is relatively poor.

… There is no such thing as absolute certainty on safety … In the case of fluoridation, people should be aware of the limitations of evidence about its potential harms and that it would be almost impossible to detect small but important risks (especially for chronic conditions) after introducing fluoridation.

… Public and professional bodies need to balance benefits and risks, individual rights, and social values in an even handed manner. Those opposing fluoridation often claim that it does not reduce caries and they also overstate the evidence on harm.21 On the other hand, the Department of Health’s objectivity is questionable—it funded the British Fluoridation Society, and along with many other supporters of fluoridation it used the York review’s findings9 selectively to give an overoptimistic assessment of the evidence in favour of fluoridation.22 In response to MRC recommendations,13 the department commissioned research on the bioavailability of fluoride from naturally and artificially fluoridated drinking water. The study had only 20 participants and was too small to give reliable results. Despite this and the caveats in the report’s conclusion,23 this report formed the basis of a series of claims by government for the safety of fluoridation.24

 …Against this backdrop of one sided handling of the evidence, the public distrust in the information it receives is understandable…

Returning to the Clark et al 2020 article, it is disturbing that researchers writing in a journal dealing with health studies on infants should have so cavalierly overlooked key evidence that a practice they advocate has the potential to damage the brains of both the fetus and formula-fed infant. The same applies to the editors. Our children are not being protected.

Fundraising Update

Ellen has given just one example of her daily work which is so crucial to FAN's mission. Our educational campaign since 2000 has been grounded in the science with meticulous attention to detail. Please help us continue this work in 2021. No donation is too large (!) or too small.

Our current totals are $56,128 from 368 supporters. We are still rather short of both our goals with only a few days to go before our deadline of midnight Dec 31. All donations are tax-deductible.

How to Make a Tax-Deductible Donation:

  • Online, using our secure server.
  • Or by Check, payable to the Fluoride Action Network. Mail your check to:

Fluoride Action Network
c/o Connett
104 Walnut Street
Binghamton NY 13905
 

Thank you, 

Ellen Connett
Managing Director
Fluoride Action Network