The Town of Smyrna will add fluoride to its public water system beginning Oct. 1 to comply with state law, announced Delaware Health and Social Services’ Division of Public Health (DPH). Under Senate Bill 173, passed in 1998, municipal water supplies must fluoridate their water.

For more than 40 years, the American Dental Association has endorsed fluoridation of community water supplies as safe and effective for preventing tooth decay that leads to cavities. Fluoride occurs naturally in the earth’s crust and small amounts occur naturally in all water sources. The optimal level for fluoride in drinking water is 1.0 parts per million.

Smyrna’s entire municipal water system of 3,386 hook ups will receive fluoridated water. The completed project, which began in June, 2000, cost $148,600 and was funded by a grant from Delaware’s 21st Century Fund. The Town of Smyrna will monitor fluoride levels daily and report results monthly to DPH’s Office of Drinking Water. The Office of Drinking Water will collect and test monthly samples from Smyrna’s public water system.

Other municipalities providing fluoridated water include Laurel, Seaford, Dover, Middletown, Delmar, New Castle, Milton, Milford, Lewes, Selbyville, Newark, Wilmington, Georgetown and the Dover Air Force Base and Base Housing. Camden-Wyoming, Felton and Clayton have naturally occurring fluoride at optimal levels.

Children who drink optimally fluoridated water daily do not need to take fluoride dietary supplements. Children in households receiving Smyrna’s municipal water should discontinue fluoride supplements for their children as of Oct. 1. However, households with home water treatments should consult the manufacturer to determine if their systems remove fluoride. If so, parents and their children’s pediatricians should discuss whether fluoride supplements are needed. For more information, contact Joseph P. Heeger Sr., Smyrna’s public works director at 302-653-9289, or David S. Hugg III, town manager at 302-653-3483.

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