Shakeup at HHS guts office key to water fluoridation policy

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention division charged with promoting water fluoridation was axed this week, resurfacing questions on the Trump administration’s stance on adding tooth-strengthening yet toxic chemicals to tap water systems. Some answers are likely to come next week, when Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is scheduled to […]

Water Fluoridation Linked to Autism, Other Developmental Delays in New Study

Children exposed to fluoridated water in the first 10 years of life had a lower risk for tooth decay but a higher risk for several serious neurodevelopmental disorders, according to a peer-reviewed study published Wednesday in BMC Pediatrics. Autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), intellectual disability and specific delays in development were all found at higher […]

Should Olathe continue to add fluoride to its water? Discussions begin over possible risks

The City of Olathe has had fluoride in its drinking water since a citizen vote in 1959, though that process may be reconsidered by the Olathe City Council hinging on certain studies and court decisions. In late-2024, a California District Court ruled the Environmental Protection Agency’s accepted level of fluoride poses “an unreasonable risk” of […]

California Health Authorities Advocate for Community Water Fluoridation to Fight Tooth Decay

In a joint statement released by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), state health officers threw their weight firmly behind the practice of community water fluoridation. CDPH Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Erica Pan, along with State Dental Director Dr. Shakalpi Pendurkar, asserted that adjusting fluoride levels in drinking water is, dare […]

AADOCR Statement on Devastating HHS Job Cuts

Alexandria, VA – The American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research (AADOCR) strongly disapproves of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) unprecedented mass layoffs of the federal health workforce. Last week, HHS announced it would be reducing its full-time employees by nearly 25%, including cuts at CDC, CMS, FDA, and NIH. Although […]

ADHA Warns CDC Cuts Jeopardize Oral Health Prevention Programs

The American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA®) expressed grave concern today about the severe workforce reductions at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which threaten critical public health infrastructure and oral health prevention programs nationwide. The recent cuts to the CDC’s Division of Oral Health undermine essential programs that promote preventive care, including oral […]

The hazardous job of handling fluoride in drinking water

Utah public water systems that fluoridate their water are now facing a tricky path forward of slowly removing the chemical and ways to safely dispose of what remains at existing injection wells. It is a complicated and at times costly process to ensure systems are in compliance with the May 7 law that mandates fluoride […]