People who live in Pueblo West may not be getting enough fluoride in their water, and that has the city-county health department concerned about a negative impact on oral health.

Water departments in Colorado are not required to add fluoride to drinking water, but the state health department recommends it. Pueblo West does not add it, and the fluoride that’s produced naturally in the water falls below the state’s recommendations.

Dr. Christine Nevin-Woods, director of the Pueblo City-County Health Department says it’s better to get fluoride in your water than from suppliments such as toothpastes or fluoride rinses. “There is good evidence that there’s a 20 to 40 percent reduction in decay with children that have access to supplemented water with fluoride in it. And there is no evidence of any adverse effects if it’s kept within that recommended range.”

The US Centers for Disease Control keeps a data base of communities that add fluoride to drinking water.

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