ESCONDIDO — A controversial report commissioned by the City Council has concluded that a state-funded water-fluoridation study is seriously flawed and does not provide conclusive evidence that fluoridated drinking water helps prevent cavities.
The $5,000 report by a Tennessee-based company, Senes Oak Ridge, was commissioned by the council in September, largely to counter a state mandate that most cities fluoridate their water. The report, by Senes Oak Ridge researcher Kathleen Thiessen, was delivered to city officials yesterday.Thiessen’s report contends that data from a 1993-94 study by the California Dental Health Foundation does [not] support its conclusion that fluoridation of public water supplies is beneficial, in part because the state study did not take into account other ways children can ingest fluoride…