MIAMI – Dr. Joseph Ladapo, Florida’s surgeon general, spoke to Miami-Dade commissioners Tuesday about water fluoridation. He was invited to address the Safety and Health Committee by Commissioner Roberto Gonzalez, its chair.
The county has added fluoride to tap water — endorsed by the American Dental Association as “safe and effective in preventing tooth decay” — since 1958. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says fluoridation reduces cavities by around 25%.
But Ladapo, in November, had advised against adding fluoride to tap water. The surgeon general, who has bucked expert consensus on health topics including vaccines, cited studies showing a “neuropsychiatric risk associated with fluoride exposure, particularly in pregnant women and children and the wide availability of alternative sources of fluoride for dental health.”
One of those studies linked high levels of fluoride in the water in other countries to lower IQs in children. Critics of the study have noted that the fluoride levels in question, however, were more than twice the regulatory limits in the U.S.
Another study conducted among pregnant women in Los Angeles by a University of Florida researcher concluded that “prenatal fluoride exposure was associated with increased neurobehavioral problems” in children. According to the Lakeland Ledger, one expert advised “caution” with the study, saying it didn’t adjust for pregnant women’s use of alcohol or drugs.
Ladapo argues that alternatives exist.
“However it was born out of in the past and whatever the purported benefits there are dentally, there are now clearly alternatives,” he said. “Toothpaste is not expensive. I mean, there are people who argue that toothpaste may be difficult for some people to access. You can use the money that you are otherwise investing in water fluoridation to provide free toothpaste for anyone who’s having difficulty paying for it.”
The committee did not expect to vote on the issue during Tuesday’s meeting.
Ladapo, speaking to the media afterward, said a new Florida bill would end water fluoridation statewide. He said he hopes communities decide to end water fluoridation on their own based on his recommendation.
Original article online at: https://www.local10.com/news/local/2025/03/11/speaking-to-commission-florida-surgeon-general-questions-adding-fluoride-to-miami-dade-water/