Fluoride Action Network

Lake Delton village board will proceed with fluoride removal despite protests from local dentist

Source: Wisconsin Dells Events | February 25th, 2020 | By Peter Culver

The debate over fluoride in Lake Delton’s water supply continued, as an area dentist spoke at the Feb. 24 Lake Delton village board meeting on behalf of continuing fluoridation.

Dr. David Clemens, longtime dentist at Dells Dental, appeared before the board to ask trustees to reverse their Feb. 10 decision to stop fluoridating the Lake Delton water supply. As a dentist, Clemens has substantial experience with fluoride, and argued that its benefits significantly outweigh its risks.

“I’ve had a lot of experience as a dentist,” Clemens said. “We’re oftentimes trained in fluoride, we understand how it works with teeth.”

He spoke on the qualifications of Brenda Staudenmaier, who presented evidence against fluoride at the Feb. 10 village board meeting. According to Clemens, Staudenmaier is a member of the Fluoride Action Network, a group that travels around the US in a bid to remove fluoride from local municipalities’ water.

One of the core tenets of Clemens’ argument was based around Staudenmaier’s claim that nationwide defluoridation is imminent, due to a lawsuit against the EPA she is a plaintiff in. Staudenmaier assured at the previous meeting that she and her fellow plaintiffs were well on their way to victory.

Clemens said that the lawsuit had been dismissed twice previously, and has been circulating in the court system for four years. Clemens said claiming that the lawsuit was rationale for removing fluoride was not a solid leg to stand on.

He moved through several other points of Staudenmaier’s argument, including her claim that only 10 countries fluoridate their water. Clemens said that far more than 10 countries have at least 50 percent of their population receiving fluoridated water.

“There’s a big list of them,” Clemens said. “Ireland even requires it. It’s mandatory if you have a public water system to have fluoride in the water. Other places may not have a water system capable of providing fluoride, so in many places, they provide it in their salt.”

Despite Clemens’ protests, the board chose not to overrule their previous decision, and will proceed with suspending fluoridation in the village’s water supply.

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