Utah bans fluoride in public drinking water

Utah becomes first state to ban fluoride in public drinking water

SO LISTEN TO THIS HERE. NEW CONCERNS ABOUT FLUORIDE IN DRINKING WATER. RESEARCHERS NOW SAY VERY HIGH LEVELS ARE LINKED TO LOWER IQS IN KIDS. HERE TO EXPLAIN IS DOCTOR SCOTT HADLAND, CHIEF OF ADOLESCENT MEDICINE AT MASS GENERAL FOR CHILDREN. GOOD TO SEE YOU, DOCTOR HADLAND. GOOD TO SEE YOU, TOO. ALL RIGHT. DOCTOR HADLAND, WE EXPECT TO SEE FLUORIDE AT THE DENTIST’S OFFICE. BUT LET’S BACK UP A LITTLE BIT. WHY DON’T YOU EXPLAIN WHY IT IS FOUND IN DRINKING WATER IN SOME COMMUNITIES? RIGHT. FLUORIDE IN DRINKING WATER IS ACTUALLY ONE OF OUR MAJOR PUBLIC HEALTH SUCCESSES OF THE LAST 80 YEARS. IT’S BEEN IN OUR MUNICIPAL DRINKING WATER ACROSS AMERICA SINCE ABOUT THE 1940S. AND WHAT IT DOES IS IT PREVENTS CAVITIES. IN FACT, IT REDUCES THE CAVITIES, THE RISK OF CAVITIES BY ABOUT 25%. THAT’S A REALLY BIG DEAL IF YOU THINK ABOUT SORT OF THE RETURN ON INVESTMENT FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS, FOR EVERY DOLLAR THAT A COMMUNITY SPENDS PUTTING FLUORIDE IN THE WATER, THEY ACTUALLY SAVE ABOUT $20 IN CAVITIES THAT DON’T HAPPEN. BECAUSE OF THIS PROTECTIVE EFFECT. OKAY. SO THIS NEW STUDY, RIGHT, SUGGESTS THAT FLUORIDE MAY AFFECT BRAIN DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDREN. SO WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THIS LINK? RIGHT. SO THIS STUDY WAS DONE BECAUSE YOU KNOW WE HAVE TO ASK THE QUESTION, COULD THERE BE TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING? RIGHT. COULD THERE BE DOWNSIDES TO THIS FLUORIDE AND ACTUALLY WE’VE GOT A FEW DECADES OF RESEARCH THAT HAVE HAD MIXED FINDINGS. SOME STUDIES SHOWING THAT PERHAPS FLUORIDE IN WATER MIGHT BE LINKED TO LOWER IQ IN KIDS. OTHER STUDIES SHOWING THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT MAY NOT BE THE CASE. AND SO WHAT THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH DID HERE IN THE UNITED STATES IS THAT THEY COMMISSIONED WHAT’S CALLED A META ANALYSIS. THAT’S A FANCY WORD FOR THEY TOOK ALL OF THE STUDIES THAT HAVE BEEN DONE THAT WERE OF ANY REASONABLE QUALITY, POOLED THEM TOGETHER, AND THEN FOUND OUT WHAT IT SHOWED. WHEN YOU BROUGHT ALL THESE RESULTS TOGETHER. SO THEY BROUGHT TOGETHER 72 STUDIES AND DID FIND THIS LINK WHEREBY HIGHER LEVELS OF FLUORIDE IN DRINKING WATER WERE LINKED TO LOWER IQS IN KIDS. BUT I HAVE TO PUT TWO HUGE CAVEATS ON THIS. FIRST OF ALL, THE LEVELS OF FLUORIDE THAT NEED TO BE PRESENT IN WATER TO CAUSE OR TO BE LINKED TO THAT KIND OF DECREASE IN IQ ARE ABOUT 1.5. IT’S ACTUALLY MILLION MILLIGRAMS PER LITER. THAT PART IS NOT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT, BUT JUST SORT OF THINK OF 1.5. THE LEVELS OF FLUORIDE THAT WE HAVE IN OUR DRINKING WATER ACROSS THE UNITED STATES ARE ACTUALLY LESS THAN HALF THAT 0.7. SO WE’RE NOT IN THE RANGE OF THESE HIGHER LEVELS OF FLUORIDE. THAT SHOULD BE CONCERNING. AND THEN THE SECOND THING I’LL SAY IS THAT THE LINK WAS ACTUALLY ONLY ASSOCIATED WITH SORT OF 1 OR 2 POINTS IN IQ, WHICH IS REALLY QUITE SMALL. WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THE FACT THAT AVERAGE IQ IS ABOUT 100. AND SO 1 OR 2 POINTS OUT OF 100, IN A SITUATION THAT DOESN’T EVEN HAPPEN HERE IN THE UNITED STATES VERY COMMONLY, IS IS NOT SOMETHING TO WORRY TOO, TOO MUCH ABOUT. YEAH, A LOT OF THESE STUDIES WERE FROM OVERSEAS. ALL RIGHT. DOCTOR SCOTT HADLAND, THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME. WE APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU DOCTOR. AND TO OUR VIEWERS, IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS THAT YOU WOULD LIKE OUR EXPERTS TO ANSWER, Y

Utah becomes first state to ban fluoride in public drinking water

Utah has become the first state to ban fluoride in public drinking water, despite widespread opposition from dentists and national health organizations.Republican Gov. Spencer Cox signed legislation late Thursday that bars cities and communities from deciding whether to add the mineral to their water systems.Fluoride strengthens teeth and reduces cavities by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Utah lawmakers who pushed for a ban said putting fluoride in water was too expensive. Cox, who grew up and raised his own children in a community without fluoridated water, compared it recently to being “medicated�� by the government.The ban comes weeks after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has expressed skepticism about water fluoridation, was sworn into office.More than 200 million people in the U.S., or almost two-thirds of the population, receive fluoridated water through community water. The addition of low levels of fluoride to drinking water has long been considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century.But some cities across the country have gotten rid of fluoride from their water, and other municipalities are considering doing the same. A few months ago, a federal judge ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to regulate fluoride in drinking water because high levels could pose a risk to the intellectual development of children.The president of the American Dental Association, Brett Kessler, has said the amounts of fluoride added to drinking water are below levels considered problematic.Opponents warn the ban will disproportionately affect low-income residents who may rely on public drinking water having fluoride as their only source of preventative dental care. Low-income families may not be able to afford regular dentist visits or the fluoride tablets some people buy as a supplement in cities without fluoridation.The sponsor of the Utah legislation, Republican Rep. Stephanie Gricius, acknowledged fluoride has benefits, but said it was an issue of “individual choice�� to not have it in the water.

SALT LAKE CITY —

Utah has become the first state to ban fluoride in public drinking water, despite widespread opposition from dentists and national health organizations.

Republican Gov. Spencer Cox signed legislation late Thursday that bars cities and communities from deciding whether to add the mineral to their water systems.

Fluoride strengthens teeth and reduces cavities by , according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Utah lawmakers who pushed for a ban said putting fluoride in water was too expensive. Cox, who grew up and raised his own children in a community without fluoridated water, compared it recently to being “medicated�� by the government.

The ban comes weeks after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has expressed skepticism about water fluoridation, was sworn into office.

More than 200 million people in the U.S., or almost two-thirds of the population, receive fluoridated water through community water. The addition of low levels of fluoride to drinking water has long been considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century.

But some cities across the country have gotten rid of fluoride from their water, and other municipalities are considering doing the same. A few months ago, a federal judge ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to regulate fluoride in drinking water because high levels could pose a risk to the intellectual development of children.

The president of the American Dental Association, Brett Kessler, has said the amounts of fluoride added to drinking water are below levels considered problematic.

Opponents warn the ban will disproportionately affect low-income residents who may rely on public drinking water having fluoride as their only source of preventative dental care. Low-income families may not be able to afford regular dentist visits or the fluoride tablets some people buy as a supplement in cities without fluoridation.

The sponsor of the Utah legislation, Republican Rep. Stephanie Gricius, acknowledged fluoride has benefits, but said it was an issue of “individual choice�� to not have it in the water.

��������

Utah becomes first state to ban fluoride in public drinking water

Share

Share

Share

Top Picks

��