Moncton city council nixes fluoride in water
CBC News Posted: Dec 20, 2011 4:57 AM AT
Moncton is joining a growing list of Canadian cities that are getting rid of fluoride in their drinking water which is added to reduce tooth decay.
City councillors voted 7 to 4 Monday night to stop the practice of adding fluoride to the city’s tap water.
Coun. Paul Pellerin said that as dental care improves, there are better ways of providing fluoride to people than putting it in the drinking water supply.
"There are many municipalities that have no fluoride in their water and, to my knowledge, there are no major issues," Pellerin said.
Coun. Steven Boyce agreed.
"If they want fluoride that badly, they can run to the pharmacy and buy a toothpaste that has fluoride in it," he said.
Coun. Brian Hicks, who also voted to eliminate the chemical, said there are already too many chemicals in our food and the environment.
"How many times do we see recalls of medicines that once were considered safe, and as research testing developed became known as harmful to our bodies and do we really know how all the chemicals and medications we digest interact with one another," he said.
But those councillors in favour of keeping fluoride said that every health and dental association in North America recommends adding fluoride to the drinking water because it is safe and effective.
Coun. Merrill Henderson said public health officials will be appalled at Moncton's decision.
“I was approached by a retired medical doctor who asked me if Moncton city council were thinking about joining The Flat Earth Society,” he said.
The city will begin phasing out fluoride immediately.
source:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunsw.../nb-moncton-fluoride-drinking-water.html
I was very disappointed to see Moncton City council fall victim to the fear mongering of the "Evil Fluoride" that first emanated from the US and is now spreading throughout Canada. This move is irresponsible and scientifically unfounded.
Yes, it is possible to find some studies that show little to no benefit to fluoridated water, however, an overwhelming amount of data collected over decades of use has in fact shown significant benefit. I'm not a pediatric dentist or public health specialist, but I do know several researchers in this field as well as prominent pedodontists and there is no debate over this within the community. It is in fact considered by many to be one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century, up there with the Salk vaccine.
To have all this data and scientifically founded conclusions attained from decades of peer-reviewed studies just thrown out the window because it was challenged by councillors that "feel" like there are "too many chemicals nowadays" is an embarrassment. 
Councillor, can you explain to me what you consider to be "a chemical"? Do they know that fluoride is naturally occurring in drinking water is several areas. That last quote in the article by the retired MD is very relevant here. They are making decisions that will impact children's health without any knowledge on the topic. Sorry, this is the end of my rant, I just needed to vent a bit. Thoughts?
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