Expert stands by fluoride

Press, 25 July 1985, Page 37

Expert stands by fluoride

PA Wellington Dental health experts have endorsed the use of fluoride to prevent tooth decay, in the wake of Timaru’s decision to stop putting the chemical into its town water supply. The Timaru City Council decided on Monday evening to end 12 years of fluoridation, after a poll indicated that residents opposed the measure. The fluoride was removed on Tuesday morning. Anti-fluoride campaigners say the chemical may be harmful and causes excessive disfiguring of teeth enamel in young children. However, the director of the Medical Research Council’s dental research unit, Dr Terry Cutress, said there was overwhelming evidence

that fluoride at the concentration used in water supplies was safe. There had been a dramatic improvement in dental health since fluoride was introduced into many towns' water systems 20' or 30 years ago. While it was true that fluoride could cause mottling of teeth enamel, “it’s a case of mild disfiguration versus gross mutilation of dentition through tooth extraction and filling,” Dr Cutress said. “Pure water" campaigners maintain that fluoride toothpaste is now so widespread that water fluoridation is unnecessary, but Dr Cutress said it was not known whether fluoride intake through toothpaste was equal to that absorbed through water.