- A Louisiana Senate committee advanced a bill to ban fluoride in public water systems, aligning with RFK Jr.’s health agenda.
- Supporters argue fluoride is a “poison” and violates informed consent, citing potential harm to children.
- Opponents, including dentists and public health officials, emphasize fluoride’s safety and effectiveness in preventing tooth decay, especially for low-income children.
Louisiana could ban fluoride in public water systems under a bill advanced by a state Senate panel, another step in aligning the state with U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda under President Trump.
The Senate Health and Welfare Committee voted 6-3 Wednesday night in favor of Senate Bill 82 from Republican Sen. Mike Fesi of Houma with six Republicans approving the measure and three Democrats opposing.
Fesi said fluoride, a tooth-boosting mineral that was first put in water systems in the 1940s to combat tooth decay, is a “poison” being forced on an unsuspecting public, saying he believes it’s especially harmful to children.
“You’re being forced to take something into your body you may not want,” Fesi said.
Louisiana Surgeon General Ralph Abraham supported the legislation, agreeing that fluoridating public water systems violated the principle of “informed consent.”
“To me it goes back to freedom of choice,” said Abraham, who said there is some evidence fluoride can lower IQs in babies. “The fact that that we’re putting a chemical in the water without a patient’s consent is problematic for me as a physician.”
But other public health officials and a prominent pediatric dentist insisted fluoride at its optimal limit of 0.7 milligrams per liter is both safe and the most effective way to prevent tooth decay, especially for low-income, at-risk children who don’t make regular dentist visits.
They cited the U.S. Centers for Disease Control that has deemed fluoridation at appropriate levels as safe and effective.
“Why would we take away the best public health measure of the 20th Century?” said Annette Droddy, who represents the Louisiana Dental Association’s 1,900 dentists. “Let’s think of our friends and neighbors who need this most.”
New Orleans pediatric dentist Dr. Robert Delarosa called fluoridation of public water systems the “safest, cheapest and most effective” strategy to combat tooth decay and cavities, especially among vulnerable children.
“It may be the sole source of cavity prevention they receive,” Delarosa said.
But momentum is building against public water system fluoridation, led by Kennedy, who has called the mineral a “dangerous neurotoxin.” Last month Utah became the first state to ban the mineral from public water systems.
Kennedy said he plans to tell the CDC to stop recommending fluoridation in communities nationwide and that he’s assembling a task force to study the issue.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which sets the maximum level of fluoride allowed in drinking water, is also reviewing “new scientific information” on fluoridation’s potential health risks.
An amendment to the bill would allow communities to choose fluoridation, but only if they secure 15% of registered voters on a petition that would trigger a local referendum.
That’s opposite of the current law that requires fluoridation unless local voters opt out in an election triggered by a petition with 15% of registered voters.
Fesi’s bill advances to the full Senate for debate.
Original article online at: https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/2025/04/24/fluoride-could-be-banned-in-louisianas-public-water-systems-following-rfk-maha-movement/83245997007/