Kids Need Dentists Not More Fluoride
Fluoridation does not reduce tooth decay. The problem facing children today is lack of dental care not lack of fluoride. Dentists have a moral and ethical obligation to share their government subsidized education by being required to treat a certain percentage or number of low-income Americans, whether or not they can pay for it. That's one solution to the current tooth decay crisis facing America today. Another solution is to train more Dental Health Aide Therapists go treat people in rural and urban areas where dentists won't live or work.
New York State Department of Health statistics (2) illustrate fluoridation’s inability to equalize cavity rates between low and high socio-economic-status (SES) groups, and also shows that fluoridation and tooth decay rates are not inversely related (3) See chart: http://www.freewebs.com/fluorida...ation/
chart.htm
For example, NY's non-fluoridated Nassau, Suffolk and Rockland Counties’ third-graders decay rates: 50, 54 and 46, percent respectively. In slightly fluoridated Albany County 38% have cavities.
Highly fluoridated NYS Counties include Monroe, Erie, Chemung, Broome, Wayne and Jefferson. Third-graders decay rates: 56, 59, 55, 63, 66 and 66, percent respectively.
Despite fluoridated water reaching about ¾ of New Yorkers, 54% of third-graders have cavities and more untreated decay than third-graders nationally (33% vs 26%). Only one-fourth of NYS dentists submitted Medicaid claims (4).However, NYS dentists income was $1.8 billion in 2005 - up from $1.7 billion in 2004. (4a)
According to the American Dental Association, "specialists' average net income was $315,160 ... From 2000-2004 general practitioners' net incomes increased 11.7 percent, while specialists' incomes grew by 20.6 percent." The Wall Street Journal reports dentists work fewer days and fewer hours than most physicians while making more money. Dentists, whose education is government subsidized, should be required to treat more low-income children. If they cry "freedom of choice," remind them choice is irrelevant when they promoted fluoridation.
Third-graders in 100% fluoridated New York City had more untreated cavities (38%) than their state and national counterparts (4).
Before organized dentistry became fluoride fixated, a 1950 Connecticut study, before fluoridation, clearly linked more fruit, vegetable and milk consumption to less cavities (5) Dentist Weston Price reported a similar correlation world-wide in his 1938 book, “Nutrition and Physical Degeneration.”
Today Connecticut mandates fluoridation. Yet 48% of 4-year-olds suffer untreated cavities (6) partially because 85% of dentists won’t or can’t treat patients with low-paying government-sponsored insurance (7).
A very recent Illinois study (7a) shows that, despite a state-wide fluoridation mandate, 70% of Spanish-speaking-only third-graders have cavities compared to 50% of English-speaking-on
Continued from above post:
A very recent Illinois study (7a) shows that, despite a state-wide fluoridation mandate, 70% of Spanish-speaking-only third-graders have cavities compared to 50% of English-speaking-only third-graders. Clearly water fluoridation had no effect in reducing minority oral health disparities in Illinois just as it hasn't in New York State, Connecticut and elsewhere.
After 60 years of water fluoridation reaching 2/3 of Americans via public water supplies, virtually 100% via the food supply and fluoridated dental products a multi-billion dollar international business, up to ½ of U.S. schoolchildren sport fluoride overdose symptoms as dental fluorosis – white spotted, yellow or brown, sometimes pitted teeth (
But tooth decay is still a national epidemic, especially among low-income Americans who can't find dentists willing or able to fix their rotting teeth.
Regardless of fluoride intake, modern science continues to show that young children with fewer cavities eat more produce (9). Only 12% of US kids eat enough fruits and vegetables.(10) And, the poor are priced out of healthful eating. (10a)
Dental Health Aide Therapists (DHATs) could be the solution to the oral health crisis. DHATs are to dentists what Physician’s Assistants and Nurse Practitioners are to Physicians. DHATs work successfully throughout the world and can drill, fill and pull teeth in the mouths and geographic areas where dentists can’t or won’t go, more cheaply and as effectively. (11)
Unfortunately, organized dentistry is suing to stop the first New Zealand trained U.S. DHAT from supplying much-needed dental care in Alaska where officials are unable to entice dentists to live or work. (12a) Defying organized dentistry, the first U.S. school just opened in Alaska to train more DHATs (12)
Children need dental care not more fluoride. In fluoridated Arlington, Texas, 61 percent of children examined had active decay After dentists donated their services, tooth decay was cut to less than half of what it was when the program started.(13)
Nationally, up to 48% of poor children, 8-year–olds and under, have unfilled cavities, whether their water is fluoridated or not. (13a).
Unfortunately, fluoride jeopardizes health - even at low levels deliberately added to public water supplies, according to data
presented in a recent National Academy of Sciences' (NAS) National Research Council (NRC) report.
According to Dr. Robert Carton, retired Environmental Protection Agency scientist , "Scientists now believe that fluoride at low doses causes the following health effects: bone fractures, dental fluorosis (loss of tooth enamel), arthritis (inflammation in the joints), brain damage (actual destruction of cells), thyroid dysfunction, and possibly bone cancer (osteosarcoma). Besides thyroid damage, it cites other effects on the hormone system including impaired glucose tolerance (Type II diabetes) and earlier sexual maturity."
I have anemia please add iron to the water.
I also have low blood-sugar please add glucose to the water.
I have trouble washing my hands please add soap to the water.
I am depressed please add zoloff to the water.
I'm an idiot with ADD please add ritalin to the water.
I can't wake up please add caffeine to the water.
the previous posts provided more information than most people will read however they point out an important factor. The Herald should, rather than berating the Hamsters that voted against flouridation for more reasons than just confusing science (how about a lot of out-of-town money suddenly being promised) instead encourage and subsidize the Dental community to provide the demanded solutions. We the tax payers who teach school or drive taxi can't fill cavities or provide flouride drops but licensed dentists can! Why not more "Free Sealant Days" - 100 children showed up-so hurray! What is so hard about dental hygiene programs in schools-does it take away from WASL? I have a little student with no front teeth because his baby teeth rotted away - from an early childhood of neglect and malnutrition. Flouride wouldn't have helped. We hope for the best for his emerging adult teeth with lots of good food and cool toothbrushes....
I will agree that the kids need better.
We adults need to stop blaming each other for this issue.
I, as a member of Delta Dental/Washington Dental Services Foundation, I would have been much happier if they would have given better reimbursements to the dentists with Medicaid than have spent that money paying you (Bellingham Herald) for advertisements and out of state Ad agencies for glossy photos and TV commercials to the tune of a Quarter Million Dollars.
I would have preferred our combined fifteen thousand dollars spent for our campaign to have gone to the children, but we were forced to spend it protecting their water.
Since then We gave our time and money out of our pocket to do the best we can, to hand out Free supplies to local Title 1 elementary schools
and local Charities that focus on the less fortunate.
Also our fellow anti-fluoridationists/ For choice people were at the free sealant day helping out.
So how dare you say we did nothing. You did not even attempt to contact us before falsely accusing us.
So my question to you is,
Where were you?
Best
Lane Weaver
Western Front (Western Washington University)
But fluoride is not safe for anyone and is not necessary for healthy teeth. Diets lower in sugar, better education about dental care such as brushing and flossing, and supervision from parents will also lead to children having fewer cavities.
The city should not put fluoride -- a poison -- into Bellingham residents' drinking water.
Western Front - KIRA FREED 5/27/2005
Todd Citron, Board President and Commissioner of Lake Whatcom Water District #2:
"Using the public water supply as a conduit of public health policy is government over-reaching, and too clearly contradicts the overriding goal of distributing clean, pure water.
Even if there were no debate about the hazards of fluoride, there is still the element of choice that should not get drowned out."
Bellingham Herald (10/30/2005)
How can you people make such foolish and irresponsible statements? You blame everyone except who is responsible and that is the PARENTS!
It is the PARENTS responsibility to see to it that their children receive the proper medical care! By the way, do not tell me that “We can’t afford it”
You can afford beer, cigarettes, lotto tickets, tattoos and other stupid unnecessary garbage and if you can not afford to take care of your children then do not create them. It is that simple.
Next time you are in a grocery store observe the customers with children. Are they buying alcohol and tobacco? Ice Cream? Chips? Snacks and the scandal sheets? Look at their children and observe how they are dressed. Are they clean or unkempt? No wonder so many of the children of Bellingham have tooth decay. Their PARENTS are unfit. Perhaps dentists should report this as you would any other form of child abuse.
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