More than half of all Pennsylvanians getting drinking water from
public water supplies are also getting a small dose of fluoride.
Health officials have said fluoridation is one of the most successful
public health programs of the last century, but across the state,
there are still many communities that do not add fluoride. Brad
Linder has more.
In many areas of the state, fluoride is only found in tubes of
toothpaste. But according to Neil Gardner, a dentist with the Pennsylvania
Department of Health, fluoridation of drinking water is one of the
best ways to fight tooth decay.
"If you go back to the 1940 data and you compare the cavity
rates with the cavity rates you see nowadays, there's been a major
drop, maybe up to 50 or 60 percent."
Gardner says it takes about four glasses of water per day to have
an effect. But about eight times that much fluoride could lead to
dental fluorosis in children, causing a discoloration of their teeth.
Ellie Rudolph, with the Pennsylvania Environmental Network, says
that, and other potential health risks are the reasons people should
be allowed to choose whether or not they want to take fluoride.
"They're doing this without knowing who they're medicating.
How much they're being exposed to in the air, in the water, and
the food. And I thought that this could be something that should
absolutely be called to everybody's attention."
More information's available on the web at GreenWorks.tv. I'm Brad
Linder
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