- The city of Bartow, Florida held a public workshop to discuss the future of fluoride in its drinking water.
- Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, a vocal opponent of water fluoridation, debated the topic with the president of the American Fluoridation Society.
- Local dentists and residents expressed mixed opinions, with some citing anecdotal evidence of fluoride’s benefits while others raised concerns about potential health risks and individual choice.
Bartow became the latest battleground in the public health war over the future of supplemental fluoride in public drinking water.
Dozens of Polk County residents, medical professionals and advocates sat for more than three hours through a debate at the Bartow Civic Center on Tuesday night that featured leading voices from across the state, including Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, American Fluoridation Society Johnny Johnson, as well as dentists and medical professionals.
Bartow officials, led by Mayor Trish Pfeiffer, sought more information to decide whether to continue fluoridation.
Bartow was a late adopter of fluoridation, Pfeiffer said, starting in 2004. The practice has come under growing national scrutiny after a federal court case directed the EPA to look at potential stronger limits.
Florida does not mandate fluoridation, so each municipality is tasked with making its own decision.
“Health and treating the health of people of our city should not be our lane, but we are forced into it as it happened way back when and became the norm,” the mayor said. “Now it’s being questioned and people are listening, people are looking at their health.”
Ladapo, American Fluoridation President face off
Ladapo and Johnson led team presentations that fired facts about medical studies on fluoride back and forth.
Dr. Steve Slott, communications officer for the American Fluoridation Society, started by explaining what fluoride is and the process of how hydrofluorosilicic acid is commonly added to the water supply, with fluoride ions joining the water while hydrogen ions and silica are left behind.
“There is a mountain of fluoride information that has been put forward,” Slott said. “To pluck a few studies out and put them forward as fact is a mistake, a gross mistake.”
Cavities and dental carries are among the most chronic preventable disease in America, Johnson said. Many don’t realize cavities can lead to infections that can spread to become deadly brain abscesses or infection in the blood stream.
Fluoridation of the water has helped and “is needed,” Johnson said, saying the water helps strengthen teeth still under the gums while fluoride in toothpaste and mouthwash treats those above the surface.
Both sides often cited the same medical reports and court findings when talking about fluoride’s safety, pointing to different conclusions. One common factor: A federal report from the U.S. Department of Health’s National Toxicology Program analyzing other medical studies on how fluoride affects children’s developing brains and IQs. The federal report linked high levels of fluoride in drinking water above 1.5 mg/L and total exposure in foreign countries with lower IQs in children, as USA Today reported.Johnson said the NTP’s study, while finding “moderate evidence” of potential harm above 1.5 mg/L, could not draw a conclusion about levels of fluoride below 1.5 mg/L. The CDC’s recommended level for those using fluoridation is 0.7 mg/L.
“No other country in the world is stopping fluoridation based on these studies, the NTP or EPA court case,” he said. “There is nothing wrong with this.”
Ladapo’s immediate rebuttal was that he had a hard time listening to Johnson’s presentation, saying he was “sensitive to dishonesty.” During a visit to Winter Haven in November, the surgeon general issued guidelines calling for municipalities to stop fluoridation, calling it “public health malpractice.”
“The bottom line is that you now have multiple studies, the vast majority of studies that show very clearly an association between higher fluoride levels and neurotoxic, neuropsychiatric harms,” he said.
Dr. Ashley Malin, an assistant professor at the University of Florida, and Dr. Griffin Cole, a dentist with the International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology, presented medical research with Ladapo.
Malin presented her own research, a May 2024 study on total fluoride exposure of 229 pregnant women living in Los Angeles and impacts on their children at age 3. Her study found fluoride was associated with neurobehavioral problems that include anxiety, headaches and stomach aches with no known medical origin, and temper tantrums.
Two commentators on her published study advise “caution” with its findings. Dr. David Gorelick, a clinical professor of psychology at the University of Maryland, wrote that Malin’s study did not appear to adjust for a pregnant woman’s use of alcohol, cannabis or other psychoactive substances.
“Considering what’s at stake and what we know from the science, this is not complicated,” Ladapo said. “Complexity is the friend of people who don’t want you to think with your brain.”
Bartow dentist supports fluoride in water
Dr. Mary Teresa Prendiville, a Bartow dentist whose practice is on East Main Street, sat quietly in the back through most of Tuesday night’s workshop.
That was, until Bartow’s mayor inquired whether any local dentists were in the crowd. Prendiville raised her hand, identifying herself and admitting she was not expecting to speak. Reluctantly, she shared her professional opinion at Pfeiffer’s request.
“With all of my education, my research into the issue, I would be doing a great disservice if I didn’t recommend fluoride to stay in the water,” Prendiville said.
The dentist shared a personal story of how her parents, immigrants from Ireland, have had “horrendous” dental issues. They raised her and her siblings in Miami, which fluoridates drinking water.
“My siblings have had some dental issues, but nothing compared to family members who grew up in Ireland in a time period they didn’t have fluoride,” she said.
During her dental career, Prendiville said she’s treated children across the country from New York City and Maryland to Tampa, and she sees a difference in those areas with fluoridated water.
“In those children I’ve treated that were not exposed to fluoride there’s a great — anecdotally — a much larger preponderance of caries, severe dental infections and also tax dollars to hospitals for dental emergencies due to dental infections that are 100% preventable.”
Her anecdotal experience was backed by dentists attending from nearby Lakeland.
Dr. John H. Paul, practicing dentistry 35 years in Polk with offices in Lakeland, shared similar experience to Prendiville.
“I help people who have the benefit of fluoride and those who don’t have the benefit of fluoride. I can tell you where fluoride is available; it’s not magic,” he said.
Paul said he estimates that in areas with fluoridated water he sees an average of one or two cavities per child, one or two per senior. In areas without fluoridation, it can be one or two cavities per tooth.
“I’d rather prevent that entirely and not make my living off people’s pain,” he said.
The dentists both recognized there are numerous factors that play a role in dental health, including diet and hygienic practices. Prendiville warned residents against taking medical studies as they were presented at face value.
“This is not a good venue for studies and statistics,” she said. “Not every study is valid or reproducible. I encourage everyone to look at the research themselves personally, don’t just take a person’s word for.”
Bartow residents split, lean against fluoride
Bartow residents and those from neighboring municipalities voiced divided opinions about whether the city should continue fluoridation moving forward.
“Let me start by saying to add fluoride to our water is to say God got it wrong,” Bartow resident Marcia Brooks said passionately. “God didn’t get it wrong. It should be a choice. I should be able to choose if I want to or not.”
Her viewpoint on bodily autonomy and informed choice was echoed by others, becoming a common refrain.
Lakeland’s Liz Suits held her infant son in her arms as she said she’s upset she didn’t have the choice whether to ingest fluoridated water while pregnant.
“It has been a concern of mine in how it’s going to affect him,” Suits said. “It is considered a drug regulated by the FDA. Any drug being ingested should be treated as a medical informed consent situation.”
Bartow resident S.L. Frisbie, who spoke on behalf of his daughter, Carolyn Holton, read a letter of support into the record emphasizing Bartow’s fluoridation is within the CDC’s recommended guidelines and is ethically sound. Frisbie cited medical research showing stopping fluoridation can put adults at triple risk of dental decay.
“Please don’t allow activists and partisans to pull the wool over your eyes,” he said.
Others strictly spoke against accepting what dentists or other medical professionals and research says at face value.
“I’m quite tired of medical professionals telling me what’s best for my own body whether they be dentists or medical doctors,” John D. Lynn of Auburndale said.
Kelly Parker, a retired school teacher from Bartow, rebutted Ladapo’s claim of easy access to dental supplies as an alternative to fluoridation. Parker said many of her students didn’t eat their first meal until they arrived at school and lacked easy access to basic needs.
“To keep it simple, Bartow has always been a place we take take care of each other,” she said. “If keeping fluoride will help those most vulnerable, those without resources for annual dental care, I think we should keep adding it.
“It really surprised me all the people from outside the community to speak about this,” Parker said.
Outside influencers pressure Bartow
Several individuals claiming medical backgrounds and expertise attended Bartow’s workshop to encourage city officials to stop fluoridation.
Joel Boheimer, co-founder of Stand for Health Freedom, a health advocacy group in Naples, gave a presentation relying heavily on his group, GreenMedInfo, for compiled information on fluoride and fluoridation.
“Interestingly enough, I’ve spoken at a handful of these around the state,” he said. “I’m from Naples there, we had it removed there, we had it removed in Collier County.”
Boheimer said his group’s website showed fluoride has 26 adverse pharmacological actions and is potentially contributing to 91 diseases, but did not provide further specific details.
He presented along with Scott Kiley and Jill Kiley, other members of Stand for Health Freedom for Collier County, who spoke against fluoridation.
Water plant operators speak against chemical additive
Several water plant operators from across the state spoke out against fluoridation based on the process.
“It’s a simple thing. From a municipal perspective, it’s wasteful spending. We don’t need to do it. Under Florida law, it’s not required,” said Chris Russell of Gainesville.
Russell, who said he had more than 20 years’ experience in the industry, said the hydrofluorosilicic acid used to add fluoride “terrifies” him, requiring gloves and extensive coverage to prevent it from touching his skin.
Joshua Eckert, a Bartow native and water treatment plant operator, said he agrees that hydrofluorosilicic acid is “one of the most hazardous chemicals” used in the industry.
“We’ve been calling it fluoride all night. To me it’s hydrofluorosilic acid,” said Paul Childers, a Bartow resident who works as a water treatment plant operator for the city. “If the commissioners want it or not want it, know to me it’s acid. It’s not fluoride. It’s acid. You are putting acid in your water that will dissolve concrete but you want us to drink it.”
Childers urged Bartow officials to end fluoridation for his safety, that of his fellow coworkers and citizens of Bartow.
Some pondered whether the chemical’s ongoing use could pose future legal issues for the city.
“Water regulations are more stringent than they were a decade ago. It’s entirely possible the future of fluoride regulations could further restrict or prohibit its use,” Eckert said.
Bartow mayor takes stance prior to March 17 vote
Pfeiffer made clear before the end of Tuesday night where she stands on adding supplemental fluoride to the water. The mayor said she has concerns after touring the city’s water plant, seeing the corrosive effects of hydrofluorosilicic acid on concrete and mental.Her decision has been largely influenced by her own health concerns, Pfeiffer said, having an autoimmune disease.
“I don’t want other people with health conditions to be forced to take something in their water that will not help their condition,” she said. “I’m pretty convinced that just the makeup, chemicalization of this chemical is not compatible with the human cells. It’s just not.”
Other Bartow officials were less outspoken, encouraging residents who did not attend to continue to reach out and share their personal opinions.
Bartow commissioners will potentially make a decision at their March 17 meeting. Bartow resident Cheri Kelley, among the few admitted undecided speakers, asked whether it could be put for a public referendum.
“Is it your decision, or will you give the people the choice?” she asked.
Original article online at: https://www.theledger.com/story/news/state/2025/02/19/leading-voices-in-florida-fluoride-debate-converge-on-bartow-polk-county/79177796007/