News Archive

The South Taranaki District Council has a duty to fluoridate its water supply, as residents in the area have poor oral hygiene and a high level of tooth decay, the Supreme Court has been told. A group opposed to fluoridation, New Health New Zealand, has taken legal action against the Council which has now reached […]

The Supreme Court looks set to tackle the issue of whether adding fluoride to water supplies amounts to medicating the consumer to reduce tooth decay. The court has reserved its decision on an appeal by a group that opposes fluoridation of water supplies, New Health New Zealand. New Health appealed against a decision that South […]

A group fighting the fluoridation of drinking water supplies in court has argued tooth decay is not serious enough to warrant imposing it on a whole community. Ann Marie May reports. Opponents of adding fluoride to water supplies say it breaches human rights to protect against unwanted medical treatment, a Supreme Court test case has […]

A group fighting the fluoridation of drinking water supplies in the south Taranaki towns of Waverley and Patea has taken its legal battle to the Supreme Court. It follows earlier hearings in the High Court and Court of Appeal, which ruled against legal arguments raised by New Health New Zealand, including a suggestion that fluoridation […]

New Zealand Dental Association spokesman Rob Beaglehole says tooth decay is a socio-economic issue. A “vast tide” of Canterbury children need rotten teeth removed under general anaesthetic despite overall reductions in tooth decay. Ministry of Health data shows the percentage of Kiwi 5 year olds found to have rotten teeth at community dental clinics decreased […]

The door might have opened for the Ashburton District Council to relook at fluoridating Ashburton’s water supply but district councilors this week made it very clear that’s a discussion they’ll be steering well clear of. The Ministry of Health is regularly updating local authorities on a new bill that allows district health boards to direct […]

A recently published US study finding that women who drink fluoridated water have lower IQ babies is being panned by a Bay of Plenty Medical Officer of Health Dr Neil de Wet, while being promoted by fluoride opponents. Fluoride Free New Zealand says the results mean the 23 New Zealand councils that still fluoridate drinking […]

Fluoride Free New Zealand is calling on the 23 councils (out of the total of 67) that still fluoridate, to urgently implement a moratorium on fluoridation to protect the brains of children being born today in their community. A major study published on Tuesday in the US Government’s Environmental Health Perspectives has found that children […]