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UK Against Fluoridation

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

USA - Children at Risk of Liver Disease Caused by Processed Food ( & more articles)

..............................It's hard to trust the EPA because, for example, with water fluoridation the entire employee's union at the EPA came out to say that water fluoridation is dangerous and harmful while the official position of the EPA is that water fluoridation is a good thing. It also becomes more difficult to win a court case against the aerial spraying when you cannot get any evidence that the chemicals are dangerous because you are not allowed to independently verify anything that the EPA alleges................................

Very long article about liver disease and processed foods.

Australia - Council wants public debate over fluoridation plans

Council wants public debate over fluoridation plans
Posted 10 hours 6 minutes ago
Eurobodalla Shire Council wants full public consultation on whether the south-east New South Wales shire's water supply will be fluoridated.
However, it is not sure that the decision will be made locally.
Councillors were told yesterday there was a risk that the Health Department will directly intervene and force fluoridation onto the shire without a public debate.
Mayor Neil Mumme says the issue needs to be discussed publicly.
"Most things that are controversial that happen at a shire level, there is passionate debate for and there's passionate debate against and that becomes one of the decisions councillors will have to make if we get to make that decision, and that is to weigh up ... the pros, the cons and everything involved in the process to ultimately come up with a decision which ultimately won't please everybody no matter what we decide," he said.

USA - Halloween candy + 2 dentists = fuller piggy banks

New Media Producer: Amanda Lents
Tri-State trick or treaters are being offered a deal by two Owensboro dentists.
Doctors David Thompson and Vicki Frey will buy Halloween candy Saturday, November 3rd at a dollar a pound. Children who bring in their candy will also receive a flashing tooth brush.
Dentist Vicki Frey says, "Decay is the big reason, fluoride has helped decay a lot, but there are still diet factors that influence whether kids get cavities or not. In order to get rid of some of that extra candy especially the things that stick to your teeth. We're going to take some of it off their hands and put it to good use."
Doctors Frey and Thompson plan to ship the candy from the buyback to our troops overseas.

It's OK for the troops to get cavities?

Australia - Koori poll on fluoride

Koori poll on fluoride
SHANE FOWLESOctober 31, 2007
GUNDITJMARA Aboriginal Co-operative has denied it is pro-fluoride and is planning a members' poll to determine its stance on the controversial issue.
A Victorian Government advertisement in The Standard last Friday stated the co-op was one of several agencies that supported water fluoridation in Warrnambool. ``We want to distance ourselves from that statement,'' chairman Brian Davis said yesterday. ``We can't speak for community members without consulting with them. ``I know people in our organisation who are against fluoride, there are also probably people who are in favour of it.
``We need to get a genuine answer.''Former chief executive Rod Jackson was a strong fluoride supporter, co-signing a supportive public letter with other health professionals in July.
He also wrote to the Department of Human Services outlining his position, before becoming the Victorian Aboriginal Health Services CEO. However, Mr Davis confirmed that the lobbying was indicative of Mr Jackson's personal opinion - and not of the co-operative's 300-plus members.
Given the ongoing controversy over the state's move to fluoridate Warrnambool's water, the Gunditjmara co-op will soon poll its community.
``We will start that process at a group meeting today,'' Mr Davis said. An information sheet will be sent out to members with a return voting slip.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Australia - Push for dental subsidy

TASMANIANS are being urged to join an internet campaign for better dental health care.The campaign was launched this week by Australia Fair, a new national initiative by the Australian Council of Social Services.
The campaign follows a survey which revealed gaping holes in the treatment of Australians' gums and teeth.
ACOSS executive director Andrew Johnson said many Australians waited 27 months for access to public dental care, demonstrating a dental care crisis, particularly for those on low incomes.
"When one in four Australians haven't seen a dentist in more than two years is Australia fair?" Mr Johnson said.
Recently the Sunday Tasmanian revealed a looming dental health crisis for children, with research showing tooth decay in 14- and 15-year-olds rising by 71 per cent in just six years.The new survey released by Australia Fair shows that 40 per cent of Australians could not access dental care when they needed it and more than half a million people were on waiting lists for general care from public dental services.
"The research revealed that although 90 per cent of people think regular visits to the dentist are important to maintain healthy teeth and mouths, 23 per cent of people haven't seen a dentist in more than two years," Mr Johnson said.
Of the people surveyed 46 per cent also indicated that the cost of dental care influenced their decision to visit a dentist and it would be difficult for them to pay for basic preventative treatment.
Most said the Federal Government should share funding for dental care.
"Australia Fair has released an online letter (at www.australiafair.org.au) which Australians can email to their federal MPs asking for Federal Government support for dental care for people on low incomes," Mr Johnson said.

NYSCOF : Tasmania is fluoridated

USA _ Southwest Riverside County's water gets fluoridated

Southwest Riverside County's water gets fluoridated
10:00 PM PDT on Monday, October 29, 2007
By AMANDA STRINDBERG
The Press-Enterprise
A good portion of residents in southwestern Riverside County can look forward to fewer cavities and healthier teeth, water officials say.Metropolitan Water District of Southern California on Monday began adding fluoride to its water supply at a Riverside treatment plant that provides water to most of western Riverside County. This is the first of the district's five plants to supplement the trace amounts of fluoride that are naturally in the water.
Customers won't notice a difference in the water, MWD officials say.
The move is bringing the system up to par, the MWD said. Nationally, 43 of the 50 largest cities in the country already fluoridate their water and 67 percent of the population drinks fluoridated water, said Tim Collins, chairman of the California Dental Association's Fluoridation Advisory Council. The $5.5 million chemical injection system, paid for with a grant from a private health foundation, will raise the level of fluoride from 0.1 to 0.4 part per million to the recommended range of 0.7 to 0.8 part per million, water officials said.
'A Significant Step'
"This is a significant step toward catching up with the rest of the nation," Collins said. "... The most important thing the community can do to ensure the oral health of residents is to fluoridate the water supply." California's water districts and city utilities with more than 10,000 connections have been required to add fluoride since a 1995 state law went into effect. MWD, as a wholesaler, was not part of that.
But MWD's board approved adding fluoride after health officers from the six Southern California counties it serves asked MWD to do so, said district spokesman Bob Muir.
The additional fluoride will help reduce tooth decay by 20 percent to 40 percent, Collins said.
But not everyone is in favor of adding fluoride.
Oakland-based Environmental Working Group petitioned MWD to reconsider. The group's concerns follow emerging research about possible health risks since MWD approved the move in 2003, said Bill Walker, vice president of the environmental group.
Concerns
"The research is emerging, but it's enough that makes us concerned," Walker said. "We think with all this new evidence, Metropolitan Water District should wait."
Walker said threats include fluorosis, a pitting and staining of the teeth, and the possibility that ingesting fluoride as a child might put teenage boys at greater risk of bone cancer. It isn't that fluoride itself is harmful, but it should be applied rather than ingested, Walker said.
"It's like drinking a bottle of sunscreen," he said.
In the Inland area, the level of fluoride in the water will vary in different areas because some cities and water agencies blend Metropolitan's water with their own supply, others do not use MWD water, and some water, including that in Riverside, already has enough natural fluoride that none has to be added.
The fluoridated tap water should not be used to mix powdered infant formula, which already contains fluoride, Collins said. Physicians, dentists and pharmacists in MWD's service area have also been told to recommend that patients suspend fluoride supplements for the next year while the fluoridation system is established, Collins said.
The added cost will be $1 per family per year, Muir said.The American Dental Association estimates that for every $1 spent, fluoridated water saves $38 in dental bills."Fluoride is conditioner for the tooth," said Mary Hayes, a Chicago pediatric dentist and a spokeswoman for the American Dental Association. "If you choose not to use fluoridated water, you are removing that chance for prevention and success."
Reach reporter Amanda Strindberg at 951-368-9667 or astrindberg@PE.com.

Monday, October 29, 2007

USA - Dentists push fluoride, water districts don't

Dentists push fluoride, water districts don't
Tooth-decay fighting chemical removed from Cunningham, East Montgomery water
By NATE KARLIN The Leaf-Chronicle
Michelle Roberts wants her three young children to have fluoride, which she knows can help prevent cavities. For the past 20 months, though, her drinking water has not been fluoridated, and she had no idea. "I have a 2 1/2-year-old and she's had no fluoride for most of her life," said Roberts, who lives near Cunningham. "What upsets me more is the customers — we were given no notice that the fluoride had been removed." Roberts found out about this recently in conversation with a fellow mom who works at the Montgomery County Health Department. Since February 2006, the East Montgomery Water Treatment Plant has not fluoridated the water that flows to thousands of homes in the East Montgomery and Cunningham Utility Districts. Through the guidance of two local dentists, the Montgomery County Health Council recently began working on a campaign to get the word out to affected residents on the importance of fluoride, which can prevent tooth decay by strengthening teeth to block acid from penetrating the enamel. Local dentists Dr. Jeannie Beauchamp and Dr. Leon Stanislav brought the topic to light after they discovered the residents were mostly unaware of the change. East Montgomery Utility District General Manager Randy Wilkins said customers receive yearly reports identifying the water's additives. The word "fluoride" does not appear. Of the roughly 513 registered water districts in Tennessee, about 155 choose not to fluoridate. "There's nothing to show it improves the quality of water, and our business is all about quality of water," Wilkins said. The treatment plant pumps water to an estimated 25,480 people, of which 17,160 reside in Montgomery County. Stanislav said the company should've clearly alerted customers to the lack of fluoride so they would have had the opportunity during the past year to receive supplemental fluoride treatments. "To me that's a little surreptitious," he said. "Unfortunately it's impacting the health of a lot of people."
Why stop fluoridation?The treatment plant's Board of Commissioners sought customer feedback and studies regarding fluoridated water in January 2006 before it made a decision, according to a prepared statement last week from John M. Atkins, Cunningham Utility District general manager. The plant had been fluoridating its water since 1960, and the process cost about $10,000 a year. In a phone interview, Atkins described the cost of fluoride as "miniscule." "It wasn't a cost-based decision," he said. "It was fear of the unknown." According to the written statement, the board met later in January 2006 and decided to discontinue the fluoridation process for the following reasons: One customer asked when the plant would stop fluoridating its water after she saw a TV news report about a link between fluoride and cancer. After studying the history of public water fluoridation, the board determined the availability of fluoride was not as bountiful more than 40 years ago as it is today with its use in toothpaste and other commercially prepared foods and drinks. The possibility of over-fluoridation leading to dental fluorosis (teeth-staining) in infants and children. Fluoridation of public drinking water is not required by the Environmental Protection Agency or Tennessee's Division of Water Supply. Clarksville Gas and Water treats its water according to the American Water Works standards, which follows the recommendation of the American Dental Association to fluoridate water to build stronger teeth, said spokeswoman Rhonda Fulton. Fulton said fluoride does not affect the taste of the water. The only other water provider in Montgomery County is the Woodlawn Utility District, which buys its water already treated and fluoridated from Clarksville. Fort Campbell's water is also fluoridated. Medical perspectiveDr. Stanislav said fluoride can prevent tooth decay by strengthening teeth to block acid from penetrating the enamel. He said it's important for young children to obtain fluoride because it will become embedded in the entire tooth, strengthening it and making it more dense as the child continues to grow. "When you don't have it as a child, it's really taking a step backward," he said. "They're going to lose those years of development." Stanislav said residents should not worry about fluorosis, which he described as a cosmetic issue rather than a health issue. Fluorosis is a staining of teeth when too much fluoride is consumed. The EPA and Tennessee Department of Environmental Conservation allow treatment plants to fluoridate water with up to 4 parts per million. Treatment plants in Tennessee typically fluoridate their systems with an average of 1 part per million, which Stanislav said would not be enough to create fluorosis. Cases of fluorosis in Tennessee, he added, will likely occur after consuming too much fluoride from secondary sources, such as children accidentally ingesting toothpaste. The average tube of toothpaste contains about 1,000 parts per million of sodium fluoride. Signs of trouble Dr. Robert Galbraith, who runs a family practice in Sango, treats many patients from the East Montgomery area. He said he's noticed an increase in tooth decay among East Montgomery children between ages 2 and 9 who had previously reported tooth decay and received professional dental care on a regular basis. "A lot of that attributes to the lack of fluoride because there's been no change in their dietary habits or parental habits," he said, after breaking down all the possible factors. He said the 8th District Dental Society plans to meet with the treatment plant's board members to discuss fluoridating the water. "It's really a subject that's frustrating me quite a bit," Galbraith said. "It is something I would really like to see changed." Stanislav said he's worried about those who don't have the means to get professional dental care or buy supplemental doses of fluoride. All residents, though, should have at least been properly notified so they can make their own decision, he said. "If 25,000 people show up at my doorstep and say they don't want fluoride, then hey, I'll back off," Stanislav said. "I just don't think they're aware of it, and I think that is inappropriate." Nate Karlin covers county government and the School Board. He can be reached at 245-0276 or by e-mail at natekarlin@theleafchronicle.com.

Sunday, October 28, 2007

USA - Newport water to contain fluoride

Newport water to contain fluoride
Officials tell residents concerned with health effects that the tooth fortifier is safe to drink. Some remain skeptical.
By Brianna Bailey
Plans to add fluoride the Newport Beach’s water supply will go ahead next month, despite outcry from a group of citizens and a subsequent City Council vote to ask the water district for a delay. Some Newport residents say they worry about negative health effects associated with fluoride, but most experts say the water additive is harmless and has been proven to prevent tooth decay.
“The argument against fluoride in the ’50s was that fluoridation was a communist plot,” said Jon Roth, executive director of the California Dental Assn. Foundation. “It’s strange how the scare tactics have changed over the past 50 years. Of course, the overwhelming evidence says that it’s safe and effective.”
Metropolitan Water District of Southern California representatives said Friday it will begin phased water fluoridation at its facilities Monday, which serve some 18 million Southern Californians. Fluoridation at the Robert B. Diemer treatment facility in Yorba Linda, which supplies 18% of Newport’s drinking water, will begin Nov. 19. The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to ask the water district to delay fluoridation, after impassioned pleas from many residents.
Newport Beach resident Larry Porter, one of several residents who spoke against fluoride Tuesday, asked council members to read the warning on toothpaste boxes before voting.
“‘Warning: Keep out of reach of children under six years of age,’” Porter read aloud. “That’s the fluoride Why would we want to put it in our water?”
Opposed community members say hydrofluosilicic acid, the chemical to be added at treatment facilities, is toxic and little data exists that shows its effects on animals and people.
A safety data sheet citizens submitted to the City Council Tuesday claims no data is available on the chemical’s potential to be toxic to animals when inhaled or otherwise ingested.
The fact sheet, provided by a chemical company, also shows the chemical is corrosive to the skin and eyes and that it may cause irritation or burns.
“I would have never had made this up because I didn’t know about any of this before,” Newport resident Dolores Otting said at the council meeting.
Fluoridation is effective at preventing tooth decay, according to the American Dental Assn. Agencies that officially recognize the health benefits of fluoridation range from the World Health Organization to the U.S. Department of Defense.
“The benefits far outweigh any sort of risk,” said Denis Wolcott, spokesman for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. “California is really one of the last states to do this on a large-scale basis.”
For most cities, every $1 invested in water fluoridation saves $38 in dental treatment costs, according to the association. Of the largest 50 cities in the United States, 42 have adopted fluoridation.
“They’re trying to say one-size-fits-all, but just read the toothpaste. One size does not fit all,” Porter told council members Tuesday.
Based on data for 2000 from the American Dental Assn., about 162 million people, or two-thirds of the population, in the United States are served by public water systems that are fluoridated.
“It works across the community; if you’re rich or poor, you get the same benefit, so it’s a very socially just way to treat tooth decay,” Roth said. “If you’re indigent, it could be a problem for you to spend $4 on something like fluoridated mouthwash.”
Newport residents against water fluoridation say chemical additives that fluoridate municipal water supplies come from industrial waste.
That simply isn’t true, Roth said.
“That’s one of the many urban myths surrounding fluoridation. There is an industrial process that it goes through, but it’s not industrial waste or some kind of bi-product at all,” he said.Fluoridation additives are regulated for safety by the Environmental Protective Agency and other federal agencies, Roth said.
The Internet has given rise to many sources on water fluoridation that aren’t credible, Wolcott said.“Science has been pretty clear on the benefits of fluoridation,” Wolcott said. “In the age of the Internet, stuff gets posted online, and there’s no way to evaluate if its credible. It’s not peer-reviewed science.”

DUBAI - FDI calls for adding fluoride to tap water

FDI calls for adding fluoride to tap water
By Asma Ali Zain
28 October 2007
DUBAI — The local Scientific Committee of FDI (International Dental Federation) has urged the authorities to compulsorily include fluoride in tap water in the UAE.
During the closing ceremony of the FDI Annual Dental Congress 2007, Dr Tareq Khoury, Chairman, Scientific Committee, FDI Dubai 2007, said the water authorities in the UAE should look into this issue seriously and adopt a policy.
“This point has been presented as a recommendation to the FDI Scientific Committee and we want it done as per the World Health Organisation and American Dental Association recommendations,” he told Khaleej Times.
He also explained that inclusion of fluoride in tap water could reduce dental problems among the population in the UAE by 50-70 per cent.
“This will also be a cost-effective solution for the government because there will be less spending on dental and oral health,” he said.

“Worldwide, fluoride has been included in flour, salt, milk etc.., but a human’s need for it has best been met through water as everybody uses it,” he said. Dr Khoury explained that 1ppm (part per million) of fluoride was the optimal amount required by a human being. “In the UAE, the amount is ‘0’ in the tap water though some bottled water companies have included it in their products,” he said.

He also said that people from the hotter regions such as the GCC required a smaller amount of fluoride (.75ppm) since the water intake was greater compared to the people from colder regions (1.2ppm).

USA - Trust the dentists, not web theories

EDITORIAL:
Trust the dentists, not web theories
Reader Feedback - Currently No comments posted. Comments
Fluoride. Do you think it’s dangerous? Isn’t that the stuff most of us squeeze onto a toothbrush and shove into our mouths every morning and before we go to bed?
So what’s the harm if our government puts it into our water supply? Won’t it help fight tooth decay?
Of course it will. That’s just common sense.
But these days anyone with access to Google can summon up scores of conspiracy theories about how fluoride will cause brain damage or weaken your bones. It’s not necessary to spell out more of these kooky ideas because they’re about as real as the ghost stories you’ll hear this Halloween weekend.
Talk about frightening, though. The Newport Beach City Council asked the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California to delay adding fluoride to the water supply. Why? Because several residents with access to dubious sources on the Internet called fluoride, among other things, “poison.”
Please.
“The argument against fluoride in the ’50s was that fluoridation was a communist plot,” said Jon Roth, executive director of the California Dental Assn. Foundation. “It’s strange how the scare tactics have changed over the past 50 years. Of course, the overwhelming evidence says that it’s safe and effective.”
We hardly think the dental association foundation has a secret agenda. Dentists want us to avoid tooth decay and will use whatever is best to help us battle cavities. Doesn’t your dentist nag you to floss, brush and use whatever mouthwash is best?
If they’re telling us to add fluoride to the water, then they know best.

And there are weapons of mass destruction in Iraq - most likely there are now. I hope the NYSCOF have a go at him

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Africa - Fluorosis attacks the bones as well as the teeth

Fluorosis attacks the bones as well as the teeth
[26 October 2007 - 12:19]
In its natural state, water contains a certain amount of fluoride. In low concentrations this protects the teeth against decay. But if it is absorbed in excess, it can lead to the development of a disease known as fluorosis. This attacks the teeth, but also the bones … and with devastating results.
Tibiri, a town situated 10 km from Maradi in the south of Niger has unfortunate first-hand experience of this. The story began in 1985, when a well was sunk to supply the local community with drinking water. Analyses were carried out to determine whether the water was fit for consumption by the local population. But the fluoride content was not investigated.
“Some years later, analyses have shown that the fluoride level was four times higher than the norm”, the local authorities explained to us. And the consequences are very serious, particularly among the children. Over 15 years, more than 5,000 have been affected by fluorosis.
Bone deformation…
The majority of them suffer from “dental fluorosis”, a disabling condition characterised by staining and “pitting” of the teeth. But others are affected by a far more serious form of the disease – it attacks their bones. A gradual accumulation of fluoride in the bony tissue leads to joint stiffness and even bone deformation: this is osteopetrosis.
“With the help of UNICEF we have set up a programme to deal with this”, the village leaders continue. “We have started by isolating the bore hole and the children are gradually being operated on”. Just over sixty in total, being cared for by the Maison de l’Espoir (that is, the House of Hope), a centre that looks after and rehabilitates disabled children and is funded by a Luxembourg NGO. Children and adolescents there are taught to read and write, to count and also trained in occupational skills such as sewing and gardening.
Major and often costly measures (such as tapping in to deep water tables and the building of reservoirs) are needed to eliminate excess fluoride from drinking water. But in a report published at the end of 2006, the WHO proposed more economical remedies such as using crushed terracotta and active aluminium as absorbent filters. Whatever happens, the most appropriate action to be taken must be discussed at local level.

USA - Newport requests fluoride delay

Newport requests fluoride delay
Concerns surfaced that the water district had offered no data showing benefits over health risks of adding element to H20.
By Brianna Bailey- Currently 8 comment(s) Comments
Newport Beach City Council voted unanimously Tuesday evening to send a letter requesting the water district delay the start of water fluoridation so they can evaluate resident’s concerns.“This is 2007. Nobody dies of a cavity ,” said Newport Beach resident Dolores Otting in protest of the plan. “It’s a barbaric form of medicine to force us to swallow poison.”Otting and several other area residents spoke out against the plan to begin water fluoridation out of concern for negative health effects. The anti-fluoride faction also expressed concern the water district had offered no data showing the benefits of fluoride over possible health risks.“Not all the people here are going to say ‘yay’ to fluoride,” said Councilwoman Nancy Gardner. “ I know their concerns are very real. If we could ask for this delay I feel we’d be serving our residents very well.”The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California plans to add fluoride at the Robert B. Diemer Treatment Plant in Yorba Linda Nov. 19, and the water district board agreed in 2003 to add enough fluoride to drinking water supplies to provide dental health benefits. The district provides 18% of Newport Beach’s drinking water.District officials have advised the council municipal drinking water across the United states has undergone fluoridation for the past 60 years, but some residents at a council study session earlier this month expressed concern over the plan.Council members expressed misgivings during a regular study session Tuesday over a proposal to put a wireless communications tower inside a clock tower in Mariners Park.Officials from T-Mobile, a telecom company, want to build the clock tower next to the park’s baseball field. The tower, designed to conceal antennas and other electronic devices, also could accommodate a scoreboard for the baseball diamond and message boards for sports activities at the park. The 49-foot clock tower would exceed a 32-foot height restriction in the park and would require a special permit.Councilman Michael F. Henn expressed concern the company had not done enough to notify residents living near the park of the proposed building project.“It is clear there has not really been enough public outreach on this issue,” Henn said. “It is a tall structure. There may be people who live around this area who may be opposed to something on this.”T-Mobile sent out a letter a week in advance to notify area residents of the public meeting, officials noted at the study session.Council members also said they would like to see a more detailed plan and technical data on the need for a structure exceeding height restrictions in the park.

Reader Feedback
There are 8 comment(s) comments on this story:

Debbie C wrote on Oct 25, 2007 7:58 PM:
" Fluoridation has not been proven safe and until studies prove otherwise our leaders need to protect us from forced pollution and medication through the water system. Claiming the state legislator has jurisdiction is not true, simply deny buying water from Met Water District. Help Newport Beach citizens. "

Ila Johnson wrote on Oct 25, 2007 12:19 PM:
" Dr. Strangelove, do you mean we should stop worrying and love fluoridation.? Wrong answer. Donna G. that link does not work. "

Danny wrote on Oct 25, 2007 12:45 AM:
" Fluoride is toxic, very toxic indeed. It has NEVER been proven safe, nor effective, not genuinely anyway. This crazy fraudulent practice goes back to WWII. One of the most toxic chemicals known, fluoride rapidly emerged as the leading chemical health hazard of the U.S atomic bomb program–both for workers and for nearby communities... To protect fluoride's toxic image, A-bomb scientist were secretly ordered to come up with a plan, to whitewash the public, to claim that it is safe! The Atomic Bomb Link---> http://www.loveforlife.com.au/node/1626 Educate yourselves sheeple, or you WILL be manipulated! "

Ila Johnson, RDH wrote on Oct 24, 2007 11:30 PM:
" The studies of the effectiveness of water fluoridation in promoting dental health are decades old. No recent studies have even done. Statistics showing that areas with fluoridated water demonstrate fewer dental cavities than those with non fluoridated water are skewed and manipulated. In fact, there is credible evidence that areas with non fluoridated water, demonstrating a lower evidence of tooth decay, are suppressed. That the California- Dental-Association promotes fluoridation, carries no weight. The CDA is a trade organization and nothing more. The fluoride added to water is an industrial waste that cannot be legally dumped. Ila Johnson, Registered Dental-Hygienist. "

Dolores Otting wrote on Oct 24, 2007 9:41 PM:
" The shame of this for the children, the sick & the elderly is that Metropolitan Water District is under no obligation to adhere to AB733 which applies to water agencies that have more than 10,000 service connections They are a wholesaler and have no service connections. They have no business adding hydrofluosilicic acid - the hazardous waste product of the phosphate fertilizer industry into our drinking water and giving us medication against our will. In essence they are using our water supply, our children & our bodies as their disposal sites. Not your Dentist's Fluoride! "

Dr. Stangelove wrote on Oct 24, 2007 9:36 PM:
" First it was The Bomb. Now it is Fluoridation. Residents of Newport, we cannot have a Mine Shaft Gap! "

Donna G. wrote on Oct 24, 2007 10:46 AM:
" To: ALL with ‘Common Sense’ to keep our drinking Waters CLEAN & SAFE. THE [MWD] ‘Directors’ announced so called ‘Fluoridation’ of Drinking/Tap Waters in greater Los Angeles and San Diego will get ‘FLUORIDE’ in their drinking/tap waters starting October 1, 2007. Politically appointed USA-EPA highest management is primarily in complicity to allow Silicofluorides to be sold and metered into our precious USA drinking waters. However, recently around 7,000 EPA professional CAREER Scientists, Toxicologists, and professional field workers signed a Petition to EPA top Management requesting ‘fluoridation’ be stopped. Read PR Announcement at: http://www.world-wire.com/news/0830050001.html "

NYSCOF wrote on Oct 24, 2007 4:31 AM:
" There's absolutely no evidence that fluoridation is safe and effective is reported in the October 6, 2007 British Medical Journal. Researchers scoured the literature, obtained 3200 fluoride/fluoridation studies and faound they failed to prove fluoridation is safe or effective and is probably, unethical. Tell Congress You Want Fluoridation to End here: http://www.FluorideAction.Net Currently, over 1,000 professionals have signed a statement saying fluoridation causes more harm than good and must end. Federal employees must be investigated for fostering this failed concept in the face of mounting evidence of harm. "

USA - Fluoride issue may land on ballot

Fluoride issue may land on ballot Petition against Corning plan has enough signatures to force referendum.
October 27, 2007
By Larry Wilson lwilson@stargazette.com Star-Gazette
CORNING -- A petition calling for city charter changes that would prohibit Corning from fluoridating its water has enough valid signatures to trigger a referendum, City Clerk Rose Blackwell said Friday.Blackwell said the petition contained 320 valid signatures -- 14 more than the 306 needed to force a vote."I'm very pleased with this excellent news," said Kirk Huttleston, the fluoride opponent who led the petition drive. "It was very close."Blackwell said the petition contained 432 signatures, 112 of which were invalid.She said she spent three days at the Steuben County Board of Elections checking the signatures against voter registration lists.To force a vote next year on the charter changes, Huttleston needed the signatures of 10 percent of city residents who voted in the 2006 gubernatorial election.Blackwell said the city vote in that election totaled 3,057.Some of the reasons for which signatures were invalidated, Blackwell said, included:•The signer was not a city resident.•The signer was not a registered voter until after the 2006 gubernatorial election.•Names were printed rather than signed.•Some signers witnessed their own signatures, which is not permitted.•Some signers provided an incomplete addresses."I knew there were a lot of different ways that a signature could be disqualified," Huttleston said, "but I didn't know what they were."The petition now goes to the Corning City Council for review before it is sent to the Steuben County Board of Elections.The City Council voted 7-1 in May to add fluoride to the city's water supply to reduce the incidence of tooth decay. It has not taken any action toward carrying out the project.City Manager Mark Ryckman said the referendum would likely be held in November 2008.Ryckman said the city's schedule called for fluoridating its water in 2009 at the earliest in connection with installing a new disinfection system.Ryckman said the success of the petition hasn't changed the direction he received from the City Council."The council wants me to pursue fluoridating the water," he said.The petition campaign was based on a similar one that was successful in Ithaca in 2000.Fluoride supporters, including former Corning dentist Dr. Thomas Curran, have said they will try to block a vote on the issue.

USA - Letter

Let Corning voters decide on fluoridation
October 27, 2007
The issue of fluoridating the city of Corning water supply should be left up to the residents of Corning to decide.It seems this issue has been railroaded through, against the wishes of many of Corning's residents by a group of elitists, at least one of whom does not reside in Corning. This same group opposes any referendum on the fluoridation issue. How very un-American.As to the poverty-level families of the Corning-Painted Post School District, there are dental hygienists who could provide fluoride service to these children. At the same time, it could be suggested that some of these poverty-level families could give up a pack of cigarettes, or a new tattoo, or a bottle of alcohol, or a couple of lottery tickets, etc., in order to do the responsible thing and use that money to purchase a tube of fluoride toothpaste for their children.Let Corning's voters decide this issue. After all, it is they who will have to ingest a substance that shouldn't be ingested.
NANCY MACHUGA

Friday, October 26, 2007

UK - Letter from Ann in the Halifax Courier

Fluoride debate: the risk to babies
Dulverton Road,Ruislip,Middlesex.
FURTHER to Barbara Sutcliffe's letter about fluoridation ("How can chemical killer also grow plants?" (Your say, October 16) I thought I should mention a new concern on fluoridation.On its website the American Dental Association recommends that baby milk powder should not be made up using artificially fluoridated water. Instead of using tap water with fluoride added the ADA guidelines are to buy a brand of ready-mixed baby formula which contains little or no fluoride or for parents to buy bottled water with a fluoride content as low as possible to make up feeds.Visit: www.ada.org and type in "infant formula". The ADA states that fluoride should not be given to a child under a year old. Paediatric dentist Dr Howard Needleman said that too much fluoride when teeth are being formed can damage tooth enamel and cause unslightly tooth mottling called fluorosis.The National Pure Water
Assoc-iation's Watershed for autumn 2007 reports that the British Fluoridation Society's chairman, Professor Michael Lennon, whose task is to promote fluoridation, has written a briefing document which also says that bottled water should be used to make up feeds to ensure babies don't receive too much fluoride.To protect babies breast milk is extremely low in fluoride. It would be an added expense for parents to have to buy bottled water for feeds. Also all those additional plastic bottles are not good for the environment.The cracks are appearing in the "fluoride is a wonder chemical" promotion. It would be best for fluoride not to be added to water supplies.The fluoride added is fluorosilicic acid waste from phosphate fertiliser factories. It is linked to allergies and health problems.Not enough parents are not being told of the new thinking on this.A. Wills

Eight causes of disease, along with a closer look at how to combat it

Carol Rossetti: Eight causes of disease, along with a closer look at how to combat it
Written by Carol Rossetti, Posted on 10-25-2007 15:59
Healthy means Happy! One of the biggest problems with today’s mainstream healthcare is that it often seeks only to treat the symptoms of disease, not the cause or origin of it. For instance, one of the symptoms of arthritis is pain. Some of the most commonly prescribed medications used to “treat” arthritis are painkillers. While they may help take away the pain, they certainly don’t take away the arthritis itself, and as soon as the effects of the drug wear off, the pain is still there. It’s a backward, shortsighted system.
When I was asked to teach at Butler in the Pharmacology Department, I was elated that such a prestigious university would ask a Naturopath to teach their pharmacy students about nutriceuticals and dietary supplements. This is truly forward thinking and certainly a step in the right direction.
So what are the eight causes of disease?
1. Deficiencies, 2. Contagions, 3. Immune Dysfunction, 4. Abnormal metabolism, 5. Stress, 6. Injuries, 7. Genetics/Age, 8. Toxins/Free Radicals
It’s important to remember that each cause promotes a specific health risk, and the more causes you suffer from, the higher your risk of disease. In fact, your risk can increase exponentially in some cases. On the other hand, your risk of serious disease significantly decreases as you address each individual cause. And as you prevent multiple causes, your body’s ability to prevent disease improves dramatically.I’m going to deal with each of the causes listed in above in an overview and maybe more in-depth in later articles.
Nutrient Deficiency/Malnutrition:
The USDA reports that approximately 92 percent of Americans do not receive sufficient nutrients in their diet. The cumulative effects of minor deficiencies are deadly. Mounting scientific research shows that the risk of “lifestyle” diseases like diabetes, gout, arthritis, heart di
sease, IBS, and stroke are substantially reduced through proper diet. Nutrition Equals Prevention.
Water Deficiency/Dehydration:
The least expensive supplement. If the body doesn’t have sufficient water to fulfill all its biochemical needs, all kinds of problems can result. These include headache, confusion, fatigue, constipation, shakiness, tremors, irregular heartbeat, swelling, depression, coma, low blood pressure, and immune disorders.
Wow! Just water, imagine that! Reverse Osmosis is the best if you are going to do it at home as it removes both the chlorine and the fluoride. Both are extremely toxic to the body.
Take your weight and divide it in half to get the minimum number of ounces of water you need each day.

Sound like a lot? That’s probably because you are continually dehydrating yourself.

Sleep Deficiency:
‘To Sleep Per Chance to Dream’. Scientists tell us that a growing number of health problems are linked to low-quality, low-quantity sleep, including immune dysfunction, digestive problems, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, depression, heart attach, and stroke. We need to be asleep between the hours of 10 pm and 2 am to give our natural killer cells (those that keep us healthy) time to replenish. Between 3 am and 5 am our liver is regenerating itself.

Exercise Deficiency:
We live in a world of sit down work, sit down play, and sit down every thing else. After diet, exercise is probably the one factor that most affects our health. Research shows that as little as 20 minutes of exercise three times a week can have significant benefits.
Each of the three in the series will also start to address and provide beginning solutions. The first is making sure you eat the best quality food possible. You will need less to satisfy your hunger if you eat organic because it feeds your body what it craves so you need less to satisfy the cravings. Secondly, start addressing the nutrients that are impossible to get from our depleted soil. There are some very good whole food vitamins and minerals in the healthfood stores. One of the ones I like best is called Super Trio. It contains vitamins and minerals, Omega 3 (more about that later), and a very high Antioxidant for anti-aging.
I like it because it also addresses our busyness by providing it in two packets of three capsules each. Pop them in your pocket or purse and out the door you go. I find people don’t want to take the time to count things out. They want it easy to grab and run. In most cases, one pill a day just isn’t going to provide you with the core nutrition in a safe and natural form that your body needs. Even today’s experts including the American Medical Association is recommending that the public take a vitamin-mineral supplements. Super Supplemental is a great, very absorbable vitamin-mineral supplement. If you have osteoporosis, you should take MultiVitamin TR by Nature’s Sunshine as it contains 1,000 IU of vitamin D that the National Institute of Health says will reverse osteoporosis. Also, D3 in amount near 2,000 IU have shown remarkable results with Osteoporosis.
Colloidal Minerals are a great way to get all the trace elements that may be missing in your diet. Low magnesium affects your mood, low potassium affects your body’s fluid balance.
Number Two in the series will deal with Contagions, Immune Dysfunction, Metabolism and Stress.Be Well.

Carol Rossetti is a Doctor of Naturopathy and the owner of Wellness By Nature, a Wellness Clinic and Herb Shop located at 14300 Mundy Drive, No. 400, Noblesville. She can

POOR diet, not a lack of fluoride in drinking water.

Poverty and diet to blame, not lack of fluoride
Kerri-Ann Hobbs
26Oct07
POOR diet, not a lack of fluoride in drinking water, caused childhood tooth decay, a public forum heard last night.
US emeritus Professor Paul Connett, from New York's St Lawrence University, said the latest yet-to-be-published data from his country showed children from poor families had worse teeth than those from wealthy homes, regardless of whether their water was fluoridated.
Prof Connett, speaking at the public forum organised by consumer group Water Quality Australia, accused the Victorian Government of taking away residents' democratic rights by forcing the chemical upon them.
``I would be tempted to say it belongs in a different century but I don't believe it belongs in any century to use the public water supply to deliver medication,'' he said.
``We have a situation where the State Government of Victoria is willing to do to everyone what an individual cannot do to anyone, and that is to force someone to take a medication.''
Scores of residents opposed to the State Government's plan to fluoridate Geelong's water attended the forum. Most were not surprised to learn the US study Prof Connett quoted showed that children of wealthy families across the entire US had better teeth because they ate healthier food, drank less sugary drinks and their parents had the time to enforce good dental hygiene.
Former South Australian president of the Australian Dental Association Dr Andrew Harms also addressed the meeting.

Australia - Geelong fluoride `fright'

Geelong fluoride `fright'
Michaela Farrington
26Oct07

BARWON Water board chairman Stephen Vaughan yesterday accused anti-fluoride groups of scaremongering and running a ``guerrilla campaign'' of misinformation. Speaking ahead of a public meeting on fluoride, Mr Vaughan said anti-fluoride groups used a ``raft of unsubstantiated claims'' to try to frighten people about fluoride in the water supply.
Mr Vaughan said there was overwhelming evidence that fluoride was safe and an effective way to prevent tooth decay. He said 80 per cent of the Victorian population had been receiving fluoride in their water supply for 25 years and had the same health outcomes as the 20 per cent of people without fluoride in their water. Mr Vaughan, who is also a cancer specialist and has appeared as an expert witness in hundreds of court cases, said claims that fluoride caused a type of bone cancer called osteosarcoma were outrageous.
``There is no evidence that osteosarcoma is caused by fluoridation and it's outrageous to make that suggestion,'' he said. ``It is unscientific and unsubstantiated.'' He said suggestions that fluoride in their water supply reduced intelligence were ``ridiculous'' and without foundation.
``They're not using the scientific evidence that is available and it makes it very difficult to have a good public discussion on an important public health issue,'' he said. ``The anti-fluoride movement is scaremongering of the worst sort. ``This is a serious matter and making silly, unsubstantiated statements does not help the debate.'' Mr Vaughan said the government, not Barwon Water, made the decision to fluoridate Geelong's water supply. ``But the Barwon Water board supports fluoridation, unanimously,'' he said.
Earlier in the week, New York chemistry professor Paul Connett, who is opposed to fluoridation, said there was evidence that fluoride could have a negative impact on health.

USA - USA - Issue of fluoride in city's water may go before voters

Issue of fluoride in city's water may go before voters
By PATTY FINNEY, Reporter
Faced with a very passionate decision, Elgin city council members will be deciding at their Nov. 20 meeting whether to put the issue of fluoridating Elgin's water supply to voters or decide themselves.
Council members held a workshop on the issue Oct. 16 and had a number of residents and specialists speak as well as ask questions themselves.
Elgin's water system has a small amount of naturally occurring fluoride, but it is not at the level recommended by the state. Elgin added fluoride to its water supply beginning in 1984, but stopped adding it when work on the water treatment plant began, said Utilities Director Doug Prinz. "It became a maintenance issue when we were working on the plant. The line kept being broken, so we stopped adding it," said Prinz.
The fluoride compound added to Elgin's water before the plant underwent upgrades was hydrofluosilicic acid. Prinz explained there are two types available, the hydrofluosilicic acid and a dry powder called sodium fluoride which has to be mixed. Prinz said most cities use hydrofluosilicic acid. "It is highly corrosive. I've seen a few drops of it eat straight through a six-inch thick slab of concrete when spilled. It requires our operators to wear acid protective clothing and breathing apparatus, so I do have concerns about our operators handling a hazardous material daily," said Prinz.
Prinz included in a letter to the council information he has researched of fluoridation of water. "I quickly discovered that this is not an issue unique to the City of Elgin. This appears to be a rapidly growing issue throughout the country over the last few years. It also appears to be very controversial," he said.
Prinz provided council members with information about fluoride. "It is a waste product of fertilizer production. Hydrofluosilicic acid is derived from pollution scrubbing operations. A common source is the processing of phosphate rock to make fertilizers. The rock also contains fluoride, silica and traces of heavy metal such as uranium, radium, radon and lead. When phosphate rock is treated with sulfuric acid, silicon tetrafluoride and hydrogen fluoride gases pass through scrubbers and react with water to form hydrofluosilicic acid. I have included a specifications sheet for LCI LTD, a fertilizer company that also produces hydrofluosilicic acid, and yes, the traces of heavy metals are still in it," he explained to council members. Prinz went on to say the Environmental Protection Agency instructs him to keep those metals out of Elgin's water supply.
"In my investigations it is clear that fluoride is beneficial in protecting teeth from cavities when applied directly to the surface of the tooth. There is no argument about that. It is when fluoride is taken internally, such as in the case of drinking water, that the argument begins. You have to remember that fluoridation in water supplies began in 1945, before most laws were in place. Now no one wants to rock the boat and admit that they might be wrong," Prinz continued.
"An example is that since 1945 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has come into being and would now classify it as a drug since it is ingested and therefore only a doctor could prescribe it. Toothpaste is okay because it is not supposed to be ingested. Read any warning label on any tube of toothpaste and it will say, do not ingest, harmful or fatal if swallowed, and call poison control. The FDA is also quick to point out that they don't regulate drinking water supplies, the EPA does, and they say it is okay as long as you don't exceed a maximum contaminate level (MCL) of 4.o milligrams per liter (mg.l). The Center for Disease Control and the American Dental Association says the optimum level in drinking water is between 0.7 mg/l and 1.2 mg/l. So which agency is right and who knows how much fluoridated water any one person drinks in a day and when they reach that maximum contaminate level?"
Prinz cited an example in Juneau, Alaska, where council members were faced with this decision. They set up a six-member committee and they were dead-locked. The council then passed the decision on to voters who voted two-to-one to not fluoridate the water. Prinz quoted a Juneau newspaper article which said multiple scientific studies showed even in modest concentrations fluoride can impact brain development and IQ, impair kidneys and thyroid function, contribute to bone pathology and inhibit enzyme systems. The writer, Jamie Bursell, studied the issue for two years, said Prinz. She added, "These health benefits are of special concern for infants and children because chemicals are up to ten times more toxic to children since they are smaller in size and their developing organs are more vulnerable to the effects of toxins."
Prinz' letter to the council also stated the Center for Disease Control and the American Dental Association issued advisories to parents of bottle-fed infants recommending they not use tap water to mix formula to protect the babies from excessive fluoride consumption. Although those in favor of fluoridating water say it helps the teeth of youth in low-income families, Bursell also pointed out that studies show low-income families are more likely to bottle-feed their infants and less likely to be able to purchase bottled water to mix formula. "To compound this situation, in the case of infants, there is no benefit whatsoever to fluoride. It has been conclusively established that the decay preventing properties of fluoride come from application directly to the teeth. Since infants don't have teeth, there is no benefit to them from taking fluoride. No benefit. Only risk. A risk that falls disproportionately on the least advantaged." Prinz encourages residents to read the article by Bursell. See the articles, 'My turn: What I learned on the Fluoride Study Commission' and 'Keep Juneau's water fluoride free' at JuneauEmpire.com.
Prinz also pointed out the costs involved in fluoridating water. Hydrofluosilicic acid is $271.80 for a 55-gallon drum. Past records show the city was using seven gallons per day, which comes to about $12,953.85 per year. "We would have to purchase two chemical pumps at a cost of approximately $500 each and replace some piping to the old plant and add some piping to the new plant. So it would cost approximately $14,500 to resume pumping fluoride," said Prinz.
Phone calls received at the water plant were largely in favor of not adding fluoride to the water. "In conclusion, I cannot recommend the fluoridation of our water. It is just my opinion that something this controversial should be an individual choice and not forced on everyone." said Prinz.
PROFESSIONALS FOR FLUORIDATION
Speaking out in favor of fluoridating Elgin's water supply were Dr. Carl Herring and Thomas Napier, PE. Dr. Herring is a dentist in Elgin and Napier is a fluoridation engineer with the Department of State Health Services. Napier pointed out that 182 water systems in Texas fluoridate water, which is about 78 percent of the population of Texas. He said there are thousands more residents who have naturally occurring fluoride in their water systems, mostly west of a north-south line drawn between Abilene and Del Rio. He said studies have been conducted in 1993 and again in 2006 on fluoridating water and suggested studies will continue as long as fluoridation of water supplies is continued. Napier explained that at the beginning of the 1900s public water systems began using chlorine which prevented 10,000 deaths per year. "Zero is the only number we accept now," said Napier. He said chlorine and fluoride are halogens. "Fluoride is so reactive it doesn't exist in a natural state. It is always encountered in nature as an ion," Napier said. He said most articles against the use of fluoride in water are hysterical in nature and based on fear.
"Fluoridation is supported by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the American Water Works and the American Dental Association (ADA)," added Napier. He said the information on using bottled water to mix infants' formula was not meant to frighten people on water fluoridation. The reason ADA and the CDC recommend using bottled water is to prevent fluorosis, barely noticeable white lines or streaks on tooth enamel. He said it is usually very mild and often undetected by anyone except a dentist.
"I have seen the result of not having fluoride in the water," said Dr. Herring. "The people affected most are the children in the community." A letter regarding the ADA's 'Interim Guidance on Fluoride Intake for Infants and Young Children' was provided to the council by Elgin Family Dental. The letter states, "The American Dental Association continues to endorse community water fluoridation as a safe, beneficial and cost-effective public health measure for preventing dental decay. Studies prove water fluoridation reduces tooth decay by 20 to 40 percent, even in an era of widespread availability of fluoride from other sources such as fluoride toothpaste. Community water fluoridation is the single most effective public health measure to prevent tooth decay and improve oral health over a lifetime for both children and adults."
The letter also stated that 170 million people, over 2/3 of the population of America, are served fluoridated public water. The ADA has the backing of more than 100 national and international organizations which recognize the public health benefit for fluoridation. "In fact, the CDC has proclaimed fluoridation as one of 10 great public health achievements of the 20th century," the letter states.
RESIDENTS SPEAK
Others speaking out at the meeting were not inclined to want Elgin's water fluoridated. Sue Brashar said, "As the protector of my family, I should be able to have a choice whether or not I want to give such chemicals to my family. It is my duty to protect my family's teeth and I do so by giving them toothpaste, fluoride rinses and mouthwashes that are fortified with fluoride used in a topical application." Brashar also pointed out the city spent a lot of time and money stripping the water tower of lead paint to help keep Elgin's water safe. "Does it make sense to turn around after all of those precautions to fill that same water tank back up with water that has all of those nice chemicals including lead?"
Brashar made the observation that Napier's job at the state was to push for fluoride. She also mentioned Dr. Herring's licensing agency, the ADA, pushes for fluoride.
Sandy Murphree also spoke against using fluoride in city water. "There are also over 1,000 nationally known scientists against fluoride," she argued against the number of associations for it. She pointed out there are still basic questions in its use after 60 years of use. "Fluoride is not a magic pill - the risks don't make it worthwhile," she said.
Brad Beyer said he did not want fluoride in the city's water. He said some effects are decreased thyroid function, links to cancer, lower IQ in children, nervous system misfunction and a greater percent of infant mortality. "In Kansas City, infant mortality went up five percent the first year fluoride was added and went up to 36 percent within five years. Why would you want to ingest something if the effects are there?"
Beyer also said Japan has the lowest infant mortality and no fluoride in water. "It is a waste product of chemical companies. Hazardous waste costs $1.40 per gallon to get rid of. They are instead making money selling it for public water supplies."
A. L. DiFelice said he was in favor of adding fluoride to Elgin's water, but he thought the people should vote on it. He suggested the wording of the question on the ballot would make people think about it more.
COUNCIL MEMBERS SPEAK
Three council members were strongly opposed to fluoridating Elgin's water. Stephen Kylberg in Ward 4 and Pat Frenzel in Ward 3 voiced their concerns about adding it to the water. Kylberg said he had at one time considered a campaign against it. "We can use toothpaste with fluoride by choice," said Kylberg. Frenzel said in her acupuncture practice she has to detox people who have adverse affects to the halogens in their bodies. "We shouldn't impose on people who do have problems," said Frenzel.
Council member Theresa McShan in Ward 1 said, "It didn't help my teeth." She suggested it's more how people care for their teeth and genetics than fluoride in the water. "I think it's safer to leave it out since we have it naturally occurring anyway."
Council member Anthony Ramirez in Ward 2 said he had read more positive affects from fluoridation. He added San Antonio residents decided to have their fluoride in their water. "I don't have any tooth decay," said Ramirez.
Council member Sylvia Ramirez in Ward 2 suggested the council put it on the ballot to see what the city wants.
Mayor Gladys Markert said, "We should let the people decide. This is a very passionate issue." Kylberg expressed some concern the people would not be educated enough on the issue to decide and would be swayed by professionals who get paid to campaign for it.
Council member W. C. Estes in Ward 3 said although he was leaning against it, he wanted more data before deciding.
City Manager Jeff Coffee urged council members to make a decision quickly. "Don't spend from now until January 15 on the merits of fluoride at the sacrifice of other issues," he said.
WHAT OTHER CITIES DO
A number of cities in the local area do not add fluoride to the water. Water superintendents in several of those cities said fluoride occurs naturally in the well water. Cities without fluoridated water are Giddings, Lexington, McDade and areas served by Aqua Water Supply Corporation.
Cities around Elgin that have fluoridated water include Bastrop and Austin. Austin gets its water supply from surface water which does not have naturally occurring fluoride.
Smithville, Manor, Hutto and Pflugerville did not answer calls inquiring about fluoride addition to the water.
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Thursday, October 25, 2007

USA - Jody Godfrey: Chlorine content can be combatted

Jody Godfrey: Chlorine content can be combatted
Seventy-five percent of the water that Americans consume is chlorinated. As with fluoride, according to the U.S. Council of Environmental Quality, highly reactive chlorine is one of the industrial waste products profitably (the reason it’s used is because it is cheap) disposed of by using people as garbage receptacles, then on into the environment.
Chlorine oxidizes lipid contaminants in the water. It creates free radicals and oxysterols (read about these on the Internet).
Though chlorinization kills much bacteria, it is now considered an inferior way to treat water for a couple of reasons:
No. 1: It fails against a variety of water problems including parasites, and can seriously harm people who use the water.
No. 2: The cost is unnecessarily high.
In 1996, a new ozone treatment plant was opened in Andover, Mass. It cost $83 per million gallons of purified water, only 2/3 as much as treating the standard way with chlorine. The town saved $64,000 annually in chemical costs alone and used less electricity in the process. I spoke on the phone with plant manager Dennis Betrosian and he said they are still reaping the benefits of this system today.
Chlorine studies
Dr. Robert Harris, lead scientist in a chlorine study noted in 2003 in Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients, said that conditions that can be caused by chlorine include spontaneous miscarriages, changes good cholesterol to bad, bladder cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, rectal cancer, migraines, allergies and arthritis.
In another study, a team of physicians led by William Enos autopsied 300 GIs who died in the Korean War. These were obviously healthy boys who passed the induction physical, remember. To the team’s shock and amazement, in 77 percent, the pathologists found gross evidence of arteriosclerosis in the coronary arteries. And in several young men, one or more arteries were completely clogged. Interestingly enough, their water brought in was even more chlorinated than our tap water because they had to knock out indigenous disease.
Optimal solution
Buy bottled water only if you aren’t able to afford whole-house water remediation. Whole-house is indeed the optimal solution; however, if you go the bottled route, do your homework.
Read the label and make certain fluoride or chlorine isn’t on the label. Fluoride is supposed to be disclosed, but I’m not sure about chlorine. If it comes from a spring or well, you shouldn’t have to worry about either contaminant, but I’d get some strips to test for chlorine content.
We have an in-house filtration system, so I’ve not really investigated the free-standing dispensers where you may fill up your own container.
The good news in all of this is that it can be fixed one way or another; halted at the tap is my favorite. But we do need to write to our representatives and let them know our feelings on mandated additives to our water supply. Hopefully, we can get it stopped at some point — but if not, the cost of filtration definitely needs to be a 100-percent write-off!

I wonder if the latest boilers that serve hot water direct rather than through the indirect old system deliver up more chlorine gas when you run a bath?

Australia - Fluoride `will happen'

John Carnie in Warrnambool yesterday. He says a public slanging match about fluoridation doesn't help the cause of science.
Picture: DAMIAN WHITE.
Fluoride `will happen'
SHANE FOWLES
October 25, 2007
John Carnie in Warrnambool yesterday. He says a public slanging match about fluoridation doesn't help the cause of science.
Picture: DAMIAN WHITE.
WARRNAMBOOL'S water supply will be fluoridated and the decision will not be made via a public vote.
Victoria's chief health officer, John Carnie, yesterday said he was in Warrnambool to outline the facts and dispel the myths about water fluoridation.
Dr Carnie defended the State Government's policy.
Although in the city on the day of an open forum with US anti-fluoridation lobbyist Paul Connett, the public health veteran ruled out making an appearance.
``Us going to that meeting and engaging in some kind of public slanging match doesn't help the cause of science,'' he told The Standard.
``If there are people who are genuinely undecided, these sorts of meetings are not the place where they are going to learn about the science of this.
``People... are not going there to have their minds changed. They are going there to have their views reinforced by other like-minded people.''
Local anti-fluoride campaigners have called for a referendum to decide if fluoride should be added to Warrnambool, Koroit and Allansford's water.
Their call was backed by a Standard Talking Point last week, to which about 95 per cent of respondents rejected water fluoridation.
Dr Carnie said the process was unnecessary and unreliable, given the decision had already been made.
``We don't believe that these sorts of referendums are of any use,'' he said.
``The people who are going to benefit most from fluoride - which are the babies and young children - also don't vote in these referendums.''
Dr Carnie said the State's Department of Human Services' pro-fluoride stance was gained from about 500 scientific articles from around the world.
``It's not just us. Every major health and dental organisation in the world advocates the use of optimal level of fluoride for reducing dental caries.
``What conceivable reason would we have, as public health practitioners, to advocate something that we know to be harmful?
``It would just go completely against all our public health principles.''
At the optimum level of one part per million, fluoride's benefits are only offset by minor incidents of mottling of the teeth, called dental fluorosis.
``At the levels we are talking about... dental fluorosis is minimal, and it is mostly unrecognisable to the untrained eye,'' Dr Carnie said.

Australia - FLUORIDATION is a gamble

FLUORIDATION is a gamble with an inadequate margin for safety, according to one of the world's leading fluoride opponents.
Dr Paul Connett, the executive director of the Fluoride Action Network and professor of chemistry at St Lawrence University in New York, addressed about 120 invited guests last night at the Warrnambool Fluoride Action Group meeting.
Medical professionals, councillors and residents vehemently opposed to fluoridation met at the City Memorial Bowls Club.
The passionate Dr Connett said better living conditions, and not fluoride, reduced tooth decay in communities.
He urged health professionals to question what he called the ``PR nonsense'' being promoted by the Department of Human Services on fluoridation.
``I forgive them their ignorance. I do not forgive them their over confidence,'' he said.

The gathering unanimously endorsed nine resolutions including one calling on Warrnambool City Council to adopt Moyne Shire's approach and consult residents over fluoridation.

USA _ Elgin weighs fluoridation of water

Elgin weighs fluoridation of water
Fluoride lauded for fighting tooth decay, but some say it has toxic properties.
Click-2-Listen
By Asher Price
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Beginning in the 1980s, Elgin, like many Texas towns, put fluoride in its water. But in 2005, with the construction of a new water treatment plant interfering with operations at its facilities, the city's water utility decided to temporarily suspend its fluoridation.
The treatment plant is now complete, but Elgin's City Council is considering making the suspension of fluoridation permanent.
The issue, which has led to debate about the makeup of drinking water, could go to Elgin's voters next May.
The debate flames up now and then about the efficacy of a fluoride compound that became popular in the 1940s.
In recent years, cities as large as San Antonio have wrestled with whether to fluoridate drinking supplies. Austin has fluoridated its water since 1972, when the public decided to do so in a city referendum by a margin of 16,964 for and 12,687 against.
Fluoride has been credited with preventing tooth decay, and its use is strongly encouraged by the American Dental Association.
"Community water fluoridation remains one of the great achievements of public health in the twentieth century," the surgeon general's office said in the 2000 report "Oral Health in America."
But the fluoride compound Elgin is considering adding to its drinking water, called hydrofluosilicic acid, can contain trace amounts of heavy metals, including lead, and some critics have pointed to research that shows that rats exposed to high levels of fluoride develop cancer. The Sierra Club does not endorse fluoridation, and the head of Elgin's public water utility says he is against fluoridating the water. Opponents also say the government should not mandate medication.
"I'm supposed to get as much lead out of the water as possible," Doug Prinz, the director of utilities for Elgin, ,said. "Why am I putting a chemical in it that contains it?"
Texas, like most states, leaves it up to water suppliers to decide whether to fluoridate their water, but the Department of State Health Services recommends fluoridation.
Scientists and dentists have said fluoride can be beneficial in low concentrations. Fluoride strengthens a tooth's fortifications against tooth decay, said Carl Herring, an Elgin dentist who has pushed for fluoridation.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has taken a neutral position on fluoride, though it does enforce a maximum level to prevent overexposure.
Evidence regarding fluoride's potential in drinking water to cause cancer, particularly of the bone, is tentative and mixed, a 2006 report by the National Academy of Sciences found.
Adding fluoride to Elgin's water would cost at least $14,000 a year, said Prinz, who said individuals can fluoridate their own water by using fluoride tablets or buying bottled water that already contains fluoride. The dental association says that generally, every dollar invested in community water fluoridation saves $38 in dental treatment costs.
But the argument has gone beyond dollars and cents.
"It's my job to protect my family," said Sue Brashar, a 38 year-old who lives in Elgin with her husband and 19-year-old daughter and asked the City Council not to resume fluoridation at a hearing earlier this month. "If I see something that might hurt them, I'll speak up, and so I did on fluoride."

At its meeting Nov. 20, the City Council could decide to fluoridate the water, not fluoridate it, or let voters decide.
Here and there, communities in Central Texas can be found that do not fluoridate their water, including Smithville, Giddings, Manor, Woodcreek, Hutto, Taylor and Johnson City, according to 2006 records from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Even so, more Texans are getting fluoridated water than ever before: Nearly 78 percent on public water systems currently receive fluoridated water, according to the Department of State Health Services.
asherprice@statesman.com; 445-3643
On the Web: Look up which cities fluoridate their water at http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/MWF/Index.asp.

USA - Newport requests fluoride delay

Newport requests fluoride delay
Concerns surfaced that the water district had offered no data showing benefits over health risks of adding element to H20.
By Brianna Bailey
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Newport Beach City Council voted unanimously Tuesday evening to send a letter requesting the water district delay the start of water fluoridation so they can evaluate resident’s concerns.
“This is 2007. Nobody dies of a cavity ,” said Newport Beach resident Dolores Otting in protest of the plan. “It’s a barbaric form of medicine to force us to swallow poison.”
Otting and several other area residents spoke out against the plan to begin water fluoridation out of concern for negative health effects. The anti-fluoride faction also expressed concern the water district had offered no data showing the benefits of fluoride over possible health risks.
“Not all the people here are going to say ‘yay’ to fluoride,” said Councilwoman Nancy Gardner. “ I know their concerns are very real. If we could ask for this delay I feel we’d be serving our residents very well.”
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California plans to add fluoride at the Robert B. Diemer Treatment Plant in Yorba Linda Nov. 19, and the water district board agreed in 2003 to add enough fluoride to drinking water supplies to provide dental health benefits. The district provides 18% of Newport Beach’s drinking water.
District officials have advised the council municipal drinking water across the United states has undergone fluoridation for the past 60 years, but some residents at a council study session earlier this month expressed concern over the plan.
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There are 2 comment(s) comments on this story:
Donna G. wrote on Oct 24, 2007 10:46 AM:

" To: ALL with ‘Common Sense’ to keep our drinking Waters CLEAN & SAFE. THE [MWD] ‘Directors’ announced so called ‘Fluoridation’ of Drinking/Tap Waters in greater Los Angeles and San Diego will get ‘FLUORIDE’ in their drinking/tap waters starting October 1, 2007. Politically appointed USA-EPA highest management is primarily in complicity to allow Silicofluorides to be sold and metered into our precious USA drinking waters. However, recently around 7,000 EPA professional CAREER Scientists, Toxicologists, and professional field workers signed a Petition to EPA top Management requesting ‘fluoridation’ be stopped. Read PR Announcement at: http://www.world-wire.com/news/0830050001.html "

NYSCOF wrote on Oct 24, 2007 4:31 AM:

" There's absolutely no evidence that fluoridation is safe and effective is reported in the October 6, 2007 British Medical Journal. Researchers scoured the literature, obtained 3200 fluoride/fluoridation studies and faound they failed to prove fluoridation is safe or effective and is probably, unethical. Tell Congress You Want Fluoridation to End here: http://www.FluorideAction.Net Currently, over 1,000 professionals have signed a statement saying fluoridation causes more harm than good and must end. Federal employees must be investigated for fostering this failed concept in the face of mounting evidence of harm. "

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Australian Fluoridation News Letter

September - October 2007 Edition news letter available on Australian Web page

The Authentic Original History of Fluoridation *

Click title to see pdf format file.

Australia - Fluoride leaves a bitter taste with prominent New Yorker

Outspoken: Retired New York professor Paul Connett says there are too many risks with the use of fluoride in drinking water

Neil Thomson
“In public meetings I always end up persuading the audience, but politicians and bureaucrats just won’t debate the issue with me,” said Paul Connett, a committed opponent of adding fluoride to drinking supplies.Prof Connett, who was in Kempsey last week as part of a speaking tour taking in Victoria, NSW and Queensland, retired last year from the chair of Professor of Chemistry at St Lawrence University, in the State of New York.
“It’s my fourth visit to Australia,” the professor told the Argus.
“I was here for three years running, in 2002, 2003 and 2004, then there’s been a bit of a gap until now, but now I’ve retired from the . university I’ll be able to devote more time to publicising the very real risks with fluoridation – risks that an increasing number of scientists are recognising.
“ The doubters are diminishing.” The professor, a tall, distinguished looking Englishman who has lived in the US for nearly 30 years, once numbered himself among those doubters.
“It was my wife who really started me looking at the evidence and arguments,” he says.“She put a pile of papers in front of me and said ‘I really think you should read this stuff’. I thought, ‘Oh No, not these anti-fluoride nutters’, but then I started to study the material and it slowly dawned on me that many of them were well informed and knew their science. My prejudices were unfounded.”
The professor, a director of the Fluoride Action Network, an international grouping of scientists and others opposed to the fluoridation of drinking water supplies, has a blunt message.
“There’s no argument that fluoride does cause damage to people’s health,” he says, citing examples from parts of India and China where the water supplies contain high concentrations of naturally occurring fluoride.
“You get fluoride in water anyway,” he says. “But in these areas where it’s abnormally high people are plagued with health troubles, the most troubling of which is a condition called skeletal fluorosis, in which the bones of the spine become fused together and sufferers are bent over.
“Generally, the higher the concentrations of fluoride in water the more we see people going down with bone problems such as osteoporosis, thyroid problems and conditions very similar in their symptoms to arthritis, among others.”
And the professor says that even at the low concentrations of around one part per million (1ppm) that
fluoridated water supplies contain, a swathe of health problems are coming to light.
“It’s a clumsy way of delivering a treatment that they insist reduces tooth decay and can’t do you harm,” said Professor Connett.
“Lots of things are added to water in the purification process, but fluoridation is a treatment and there’s no control over its effects across the entire population – the very young, very old, those with poor nutrition and people with poor kidney function who can’t excrete it as efficiently as others.

“And everyone’s being encouraged to drink more water.”
The professor said it was well over 60 years since the first water supplies were fluoridated and, as time had gone by, a growing number of problems had emerged.
“The American Dental Assoc-iation is now telling mothers not to use fluoridated water when mixing milk formula for babies,” he said.“Dentists in the US have realised there’s no control over how much fluoride the babies are getting – it’s affected by how often they’re feeding, the strength of the feed mix, the amount of fluoride in the water …
“But the real clincher in this is that breast milk has a very low fluoride content; it doesn’t seem like nature puts any sort of premium on it.”
And the professor said an alarming number of older children were showing the symptoms of dental fluorosis – a condition in which the teeth discolour because of over-consumption of fluoride.
“A survey shows that as many as 32 per cent of American children may have this condition to some degree,” he said
“The Centre for Disease Control in the USA says its effects are only cosmetic – you try telling that to an average teenager self-conscious about their appearance!”
And what about the basic argument that having fluoride added to your drinking water cuts the number of tooth cavities you’ll get?
Professor Connett said a growing amount of scientific research going back to the early ’80s showed no difference between tooth decay among people whose drinking water was fluoridated and those with unfluoridated supplies.
“The fact is that when you look at levels of tooth decay across the board – in places where the water’s fluoridated and those where it isn’t – you see that tooth decay is going down generally, thanks to people becoming more affluent, more informed, and hence eating better and looking after their teeth better.
“A study from New Zealand showed levels of dental decay there were falling before the government introduced fluoridation.”
And, said the professor, an Australian study published in the top international science journal, Nature, in 2004 had found no relation between tooth decay and fluoridation.
But the professor didn’t deny that fluoride-containing toothpastes might also have played a role in this improvement.
“I think the topical application of the substance – directly, where it’s thought it might do some good – could make sense,” he said. “But not the systemic use – taking fluoride into your whole body by drinking it.”
After his speaking engagement in Kempsey on Wednesday evening the professor was bound for Brisbane, where he will be a guest speaker at the Combined Environmental Scientific Symposium, taking place in the Queensland capital on October 27 and 28.
“Australia’s got a long way to go,” he said. “People have simply got to start questioning their decision-makers on this issue, though it will be a hard battle. Here, as in other countries committed to fluoridation, like New Zealand, the USA, Israel and Ireland, politicians and civil servants have promoted fluoridation for so long, it’ll mean a loss of credibility to admit they’ve been wrong.
“But a growing number of their counterparts in countries such as the UK and Germany have taken that step.”
Fluoridation has not commenced in Kempsey Shire.
The South West Rocks fluoridation system is complete and awaiting inspection by the Department of Water and Energy, and the Crescent Head and Kempsey fluoridation systems have been designed and have been submitted for construction approval with NSW Health.
Footnote: NSW Health state they will not force any councils to fluoridate their water supplies.
Kempsey Shire Council has asked for a reversal of gazettal of fluoridation, NSW health is refusing to reverse gazettal. NSW Health state that Kempsey Shire Council requested fluoridation.
Council has again forwarded a copy of the original council motion to NSW Health.
It states that the decision was handed to expert committee of health, with certain provisions including that “unless a strong case” for fluoridation was demonstrated, Kempsey would not be fluoridating their water supplies.

Australia - Call for fluoridated water referendum in Ballarat

Call for fluoridated water referendum in Ballarat
Posted 7 hours 7 minutes ago
Water in Ballarat is not currently fluoridated (ABC News: Giulio Saggin)
An academic from an American university is calling for residents of Ballarat to ask for a referendum to decide if the city's water supply should be fluoridated.
The Victorian State Government is pushing to add fluoride to the region's water supply.
Professor Paul Connett told a meeting of about 150 residents last night, that scientists have proven the detrimental health effects of adding fluoride.
Professor Connett says a referendum is the only way to resolve the issue.
"People here are seeing democracy torn up in front of their faces," he said at the meeting in Ballarat."It's making them angry in Warrnambool, it's making them angry in Ballarat, it's making them angry in Geelong," said Professor Connett.
"There's going to be a heavy price to pay when you separate honest science from public policy and when you separate people from decisions which affect their health," he said.

UK - Don't Call That Dentist, Hand Me the Pliers

"A nation of people with bad teeth" was how George Orwell caricatured the United Kingdom in 1940. Nor was he unique in poking fun at fruits of British dentistry; since then, everyone from Austin Powers to The Simpsons — remember the Big Book of British Smiles? — has had some mean observation about our molars. But it's a caricature as false as the teeth of many a British granny of yore.
Sloppy diets and buckets of sugary tea might once have been unkind to the nation's gums, but England now shines in international rankings of top teeth. The introduction of fluoride toothpaste 30 years ago has helped England reduce levels of tooth decay among 12-year-olds to among the lowest in Europe. (Kids in Poland, Hungary and Slovakia have five times as many cavities as those in England.) Even Gordon Brown, Britain's new Prime Minister, swapped his own grubby gnashers for pearly whites a couple of years ago.

But there's a new smudge on Britain's winning smile: the do-it-yourself dentist. In a survey of thousands of English dental patients and hundreds of dentists published this month by the government-backed Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health, 6% of English patients fessed up to administering their own treatments. One admitted to yanking out 14 of his teeth with pliers; another had used superglue to repair a crown. Paul Rowland, a warehouse worker from Derby, in central England, was at least smart enough to take "a good swig of whisky for the pain," before using pliers and thread to pull out his own troublesome back tooth last month, he says. "It hurt like hell for a couple of seconds," 52-year-old Rowland recalls. His post-op pain relief? "Another swig of whisky."

Rowland insists he's suffered no ill effects. And it's only the second tooth he's ever lost as an adult. But why take fangs into your own hands? Like most of those surveyed who owned up to self-treatment, Rowland has found it difficult getting professional treatment, because of a shortage of dentists offering services through Britain's decades-old, taxpayer-funded National Health Service (NHS). There were 21,000 dentists available to NHS patients in England in March this year, almost a quarter more than the number drilling and filling a decade ago — although around 500 less than a year ago. Hundreds of dentists quit the NHS for more lucrative private work before revamped NHS working arrangements came into force in April last year.

Nor does today's total reflect the fact that a rising number of NHS dentists work part-time, says Dan Berry, senior policy officer at the British Dental Association. And it doesn't take into account the amount of time NHS dentists are now allocating to private punters. (Dentists are free to do both public and private work.) All told, some 44% of English patients didn't make it to an NHS practice in the last two years, many of them unable to afford private care. "That," says Berry, "is the real gap." The government insists the shakeup of the NHS system in April 2006 — which handed local public health trusts the power (and cash) to decide where demand for a new practice is most acute — is confronting that problem.

But for now, many prefer to fend for themselves rather than live with pain while they wait for treatment. Dentanurse, a central England-based purveyor of dental products, says sales of its First Aid Kit for Teeth — complete with "specially formulated temporary cement" for your own running repairs — have doubled in the last five years, thanks in part to patients' problems getting treatment via the NHS. The kit was good enough to keep one woman's four-tooth bridge in place for five months while she waited for an appointment with a dentist, says Jenny Lees, Dentanurse's managing director.

As for pliers-man Rowland, his hunt for a local NHS dental practice continues. When one did open for business a couple of years ago, it drew a line of prospective patients a mile long. "When I saw the queue, I thought no chance." Rowland says. "But," he adds, "I will always try."

USA - Newport requests fluoride delay

Newport requests fluoride delay
Concerns surfaced that the water district had offered no data showing benefits over health risks of adding element to H20.
By Brianna Bailey
Newport Beach City Council voted unanimously Tuesday evening to send a letter requesting the water district delay the start of water fluoridation so they can evaluate resident’s concerns.
“This is 2007. Nobody dies of a cavity ,” said Newport Beach resident Dolores Otting in protest of the plan. “It’s a barbaric form of medicine to force us to swallow poison.”
Otting and several other area residents spoke out against the plan to begin water fluoridation out of concern for negative health effects. The anti-fluoride faction also expressed concern the water district had offered no data showing the benefits of fluoride over possible health risks.
“Not all the people here are going to say ‘yay’ to fluoride,” said Councilwoman Nancy Gardner. “ I know their concerns are very real. If we could ask for this delay I feel we’d be serving our residents very well.”
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California plans to add fluoride at the Robert B. Diemer Treatment Plant in Yorba Linda Nov. 19, and the water district board agreed in 2003 to add enough fluoride to drinking water supplies to provide dental health benefits. The district provides 18% of Newport Beach’s drinking water.
District officials have advised the council municipal drinking water across the United states has undergone fluoridation for the past 60 years, but some residents at a council study session earlier this month expressed concern over the plan.
Council members expressed misgivings during a regular study session Tuesday over a proposal to put a wireless communications tower inside a clock tower in Mariners Park.
Officials from T-Mobile, a telecom company, want to build the clock tower next to the park’s baseball field. The tower, designed to conceal antennas and other electronic devices, also could accommodate a scoreboard for the baseball diamond and message boards for sports activities at the park. The 49-foot clock tower would exceed a 32-foot height restriction in the park and would require a special permit.
Councilman Michael F. Henn expressed concern the company had not done enough to notify residents living near the park of the proposed building project.
“It is clear there has not really been enough public outreach on this issue,” Henn said. “It is a tall structure. There may be people who live around this area who may be opposed to something on this.”
T-Mobile sent out a letter a week in advance to notify area residents of the public meeting, officials noted at the study session.
Council members also said they would like to see a more detailed plan and technical data on the need for a structure exceeding height restrictions in the park.

USA - Corning: Fluoride issue may go to voters

Fluoride issue may go to voters
October 24, 2007
By G. Jeffrey Aaron
jaaron@stargazette.com
Star-Gazette
CORNING -- Assuming the petition seeking to prevent the fluoridation of the city of Corning's public water supply contains enough valid signatures and satisfies other legal requirements, a referendum on the issue could go to voters in the 2008 general election, according to a written opinion from the city's attorney.
The memo also states that Corning's city clerk has 30 days to examine the proposed local law, which is included in the petitions presented to Corning City Council on Sept. 27, and to verify the signatures.
If the clerk finds the petitions contain at least 10 percent of the number of people voting in the last gubernatorial election -- about 306 names -- she must inform the council that the petitions comply with the law.
Council must then vote on whether to send the proposed law to the Steuben County Board of Elections, which would then place it on the ballot next year.
The referendum can't be placed on the ballot for November this year, Corning City Manager Mark Ryckman said, because 60 days must pass between when the proposed law is placed on the ballot and the elections take place.
"It appears the proposed referendum is mandatory because it abolishes, transfers or curtails the power of an elective officer," Corning's city attorney, Pamela Doyle Gee, stated in her memo to Ryckman.
The contents of Gee's memo were discussed by Ryckman and Corning Mayor Frank Coccho at a press conference Tuesday at Corning City Hall.
Corning city officials last week denied a Freedom of Information request by the Star-Gazette seeking to force the city to release Gee's memo. The city denied the request but scheduled the press conference to announce the details of the opinion, Ryckman's office said.
Coccho said the city was moving to ensure all legal requirements regarding the petition and the changes it is proposing are fulfilled. He also said stripping the council of its power in this narrow issue could open the door to similar attempts in the future.
"City Council has been acting proactively to avoid any allegations that we blew it. We want to make sure we did everything legally correct on both sides of the issue," said Coccho.
The petition and the changes it proposes for Corning City Charter form the latest chapter in the struggle to add fluoride to the city's water supply.
Although City Council voted in May to fluoridate city water, action has yet to be taken. The issue has surfaced several times over the past 20 years, city officials, proponents and opponents of the measure say.
Supporters of fluoridation say the additive would help improve the dental health of Corning residents who can't afford proper dental care.
Studies have shown that fluoridated water can reduce tooth decay by about 40 percent, said Thomas Curran, a retired dentist from Elmira. The principal beneficiaries would be children, the poor and the elderly, Curran said, who opposes the referendum.
Furthermore, the cost of fluoridating the city's water, estimated at $200,000, is far less than the $1.8 million spent annually to provide dental care to city residents who receive public assistance. Curran also said he is dissatisfied with the fact that since a direct referendum on fluoridation isn't legal, opponents have worded the petition so that city government is stripped of its authority to fluoridate the water.
But that strategy, says Kirk Huttleston of Corning, would take the fluoridation decision out of the hands of a few city officials and put it in the hands of those who would be most affected by it -- the city's residents.
Huttleston, who organized the petition drive, said he has concerns about the proposed cost of the project and fluoride's long-term health effects.
Fluoride has been linked to increasing the body's supply of aluminum, Huttleston said, which can lead to conditions such as Parkinson's disease and attention deficit disorder.
There are easier and less costly ways of realizing fluoride's benefits to dental health, he said, such as using fluoridated toothpaste rather than drinking fluoridated water.