BROOKSVILLE — City water users won’t be getting any more fluoride in their drinking water, the council decided April 1.
City resident Robert Antonek spoke during public comment and said that people get plenty of fluoride from sources besides drinking water.
“Fluoride causes problems,” he said, based on research he said he’s done. “It affects fetuses, it reduces the IQ in children,” and in countries where the water is fluoridated, the children develop blotches on their teeth, he said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, the American Dental Association and other groups, fluoride has been proven to protect teeth from decay. Bacteria in the mouth produce acid when a person eats sugary foods, and that acid eats away minerals from the tooth’s surface. That makes the tooth weaker and increases the chance of developing cavities. The CDC says water fluoridation helps to rebuild and strengthen the tooth’s surface, preventing tooth decay.
But the issue is still sparking heated debates, 70 years after the chemical was first added to America’s water supply. Fluoride opponents are disputing long-established science to say that the substance lowers IQ and causes everything from acne to Alzheimer’s. Some researchers have reported that there is no special advantage to water fluoridation, and topical application is best. Another issue is the argument that fluoridation is a form of large-scale compulsory medication.
The issue has nibbled at the city for years. About 65 percent of voters said to keep fluoride in city water in a 2018 municipal election. That’s after the city first added the mineral in the 1980s, then stopped at some point.
The city also treats its water with chlorine, Utilities Superintendent David Kingsbury said, and legally the Water Department can’t take it out. The council in 2013 voted to approve that.
Removing fluoride, he said, would save the city $23,000 plus $7,000 for the fluoride deliveries.
Mayor Blake Bell is among those saying the use of fluoride is about medicating people without their knowledge. He noted while holding up a box of Crest fluoridated toothpaste, a warning says to keep it away from children under 6 and if you swallow toothpaste, you’re supposed to call poison control.
“I would love to see us remove fluoride,” Bell said, and Kingsbury agreed.
Public Works Director Richard Weeks admitted that the city hasn’t been adding fluoride for the past few months because of repairs being made to the system.
“As of right now, there is no fluoride in the water because the machine, all the pumps are under repair,” Weeks said. “So there is no fluoride.”
With the city’s decision, the repairs will stop.
The measure passed 5-0 on a roll call vote.
Original article online at: https://www.suncoastnews.com/news/city-council-ends-fluoridation-of-city-water/article_261d1dce-f360-11ee-948c-c77df9bef792.html