The decision on Thursday night of regional council’s Committee of the Whole in Niagara to vote down a motion to fluoridate all of Niagara’s municipal water was a good one for the community.

As the Region of Niagara has 12 communities and only one full community which has received water fluoridation for over 40 years, its uniqueness to assess the impact of fluoridation was more obvious than in most communities.

Dr. Klooz, Associate Commissioner of Health for the region, presented data at a public meeting in July which revealed Welland children have higher tooth decay rates, at many different ages, after years of exposure to fluoridation in Welland’s water supply.

At the committee meeting, local dentists made claims about the benefits of water fluoridation and ignored the local data. On average, compared to other regionalchildren, tooth decay rates are up 27 per cent in Welland.

Many councillors voiced their concerns over possible negative health effects and the inability to control the dose of fluoride from one individual to another, considering there are many more sources of fluoride in our diets and the environment than years ago. They were also concerned about the fact the Public Works Department confirmed the chemical used for water fluoridation is not a pure product and does contain trace amounts of lead, arsenic and other contaminants which they do not have a process to remove, only dilute.

The issue of water fluoridation should not be surrounded by emotion and fear mongering about the possible outbreak of rampant tooth decay, but simply about new science that has evolved.

Modern medical science has brought forward new studies and awareness about adding synthetic toxins to our diets and the environment.

We need to educate the public about dental hygiene, good nutrition and to fight poverty, not throw more fluoride at the problem.

Cindy Mayor
Waterdown