TORONTO – Canadian dental experts defended the use of fluoride in drinking water Thursday as some environmental activists claimed international studies show the chemical can cause brain damage in children and called for an end to the “60-year experiment.”

Environmental groups said their experts looked at studies from India, China, Brazil and other countries documenting what they consider the dangers fluoride poses to human health and the minimal benefits it provides for dental care.

Health Canada’s chief dental officer, Dr. Peter Cooney, who has been under fire of late from anti-fluoride groups for what they consider a dismissive attitude towards their concerns.

Dr. Vyvyan Howard of the University of Ulster in Ireland, who is in Toronto for a conference on fluoride in drinikng water, said just a five-point drop in IQ levels could lead to a 50 percent increase in the number of mentally disabled people and a similar decline in the number of “gifted” people.

Print PDF