The City of Calgary voted to end fluoridation of their water in 2011 and during this time, the number of children with tooth decay has increased - completely unsurprising to those of us who believe in science.
Sarah Reigler from the CBC reports in an article from Feb. 25: "Between 2013 and 2016, the number of children seen by the Alex Dental Health Bus -- which provides mobile services to children in schools in high-needs areas -- jumped from 798 to 1,607, with the biggest demands for service coming from low-income or otherwise disadvantaged families." This is a 50 per cent increase in three years.
Calgary has an exceptionally brave city councillor, Diane Colley-Urquhart, who was willing to repeatedly ask for a motion to research the effects on children in Calgary since fluoride was removed. It took her two times before other city councillors would support her motion - not because the councillors didn't believe in the health benefits of fluoride but because supporting fluoridation is a form of career suicide for municipal politicians.
In 2018, Windsor, Ont. voted to reinstate public water fluoridation after it was reported that the "number of children with tooth decay or requiring urgent oral health care in the region increased by 51 per cent in 2016-17 compared to 2011-12."
I do not have the numbers for the amount of children in Prince George with increased tooth decay because our city council has not requested a report on the effects of no fluoride in municipal water from Northern Health. I would like them to ask.
I am looking for a brave city councillor who believes in science and knows that voting to end fluoridation was wrong. We have city councillors who are perfectly aware that fluoride is good for the community at large however they have little interest in putting themselves out there to do what it right until rational public opinion will provide some political cover. The problem is that everyday people who believe in science are typically not as vocal as the misguided rantings of the anti-poison brigade.
The argument against fluoridating our water supply usually is some variation of "you can't put that in our water - its poison! Here's some bunk 'science' to support my irrational point of view."
Except that argument is flawed.Unless these people also love dysentery, polio, malaria and cholera and rally to reject chlorinated water, their viewpoint doesn't hold much weight.
Sorry folks, I believe in science.
A brief message to the anti-fluoride army that will immediately call my house and send me quasi-threatening messages on my personal Facebook account: there is nothing that would ever encourage me to call someone at home because I disagree with them. I will never send you a message on your personal Facebook account or comment publically (except in this format) about how much I disagree with you. Consider if you would be really keen on receiving angry phone calls from strangers before dialing. Instead of getting your back up and angry typing a message to me that I will not read, I strongly encourage you to read what the following, reputable sources have to say about the benefits of the naturally-occurring mineral called fluoride and how it has been safely used for over 75 years: Health Canada, the World Health Organization, the Center for Disease Control, the Canadian Dental Association and the American Dental Association.
If your article is written by a "health practitioner" who did not go to medical school, do not send me the link.
I'll stick with proven science, thanks.
