- The split board weighed arguments on both sides as the Florida Legislature is considering a bill to resolve the issue one way or another.
- The issue has sparked controversy between those who argue fluoride levels can neurologically be toxic to children, and those who say the practice has helped communities prevent oral health problems.
- One dentist suggested the city consult its planning and zoning officers if they decide to remove fluoride from the water supply, “because you are going to need twice as many dentists.”
PORT ORANGE — Division was clear among those who spoke about water fluoridation during the City Council’s Tuesday night meeting, which ended with a 3-2 split vote from the board to keep adding fluoride to the city’s water supply.
Port Orange is the first Volusia County city to approve continuing water fluoridation since the issue became a hot topic at the end of last year. Ormond Beach and New Smyrna Beach have voted to stop fluoridation in their public water supplies, as have several other Florida cities.
Residents worried about their children’s health, and some, who argued water fluoridation is a form of forced medical treatment, spoke against the practice as a whole. On the other hand, several local dentists spoke in favor of community water fluoridation, emphasizing its proven safety and effectiveness in preventing tooth decay over many decades.
Councilmembers Shawn Goepfert and Jonathan Foley and Vice Mayor Tracy Grubbs approved a motion to continue the city’s water fluoridation operation, which has been in place since the 1980s.
Mayor Scott Stiltner and councilman Lance Green were opposed.
Port Orange councilmembers weigh fluoride decision
In 1945, Grand Rapids, Michigan, became the first city in the world to fluoridate its drinking water, according to the National Institute of Health. After 11 years of monitoring 30,000 school children in the city, officials found that cavity rates among the group “dropped more than 60%.”
Water fluoridation was a discussion item on the City Council’s agenda, with the possibility of a vote if a councilmember made a motion to either continue or discontinue the practice.
Stiltner thanked community members who reached out with information and opinions on both sides of the debate.
The mayor said residents’ personal choices were “a big factor” in his consideration of the issue.
“I also think that, in a lot of the data and research that you read, the concept of fluoridation early had a lot to do with … large communities, globally, that struggled to provide dental hygiene — they don’t have that,” Stiltner said. “So conceptually, the idea is you put in the water, everybody has to drink water, and so that resolves that.
“But you look at a city like Port Orange, you have got to ask yourself: Are we that city?”
He argued that Port Orange is a “well-off” city where dental hygiene is “very, very accessible,” and where schools, as he recollected from his own experience, teach children about caring for their oral health.
“I look at our community, and I don’t see a city that fits that prior mold of, ‘How else are they going to take care of their teeth?’”
Grubbs said the information surrounding the subject “is a lot to take in when you are dealing with people’s health.”
The vice mayor said one the aspects of the discussion that he found concerning was how accessible dental care might be for community members, especially children, who are “less fortunate.”
“It is a major concern,” Grubbs said, highlighting the county’s health department program, Volusia Volunteers in Medicine, which can offer free medical and limited dental care to residents who meet certain requirements. “That’s a big concern for me — everybody should have equal health.”
Grubbs added that past surgeon generals’ recommendations for Florida cities to keep water fluoridation make the decision this time around a “tough” one, since the current surgeon general, Joseph Ladapo, recommended the opposite in November.
Foley said he is open to new information about the issue, which he expects will come out the state Legislature’s proposed Senate Bill 700, which would prohibit local municipalities from adding fluoride to public water systems.
“There is a lot of testimony and a lot of evidence, and they are going to get a much better presentation than the five of us are going from the information we are getting,” Foley said. “I think we might want to make sure to let the state hear all the arguments and then follow their lead on this.”
Fluoridated water: Residents, local dentists offer opposing views
Michelle Edwards was one of the residents who sent “numerous studies” to council members which she claimed document the “negative effects of fluoridated water.”
Edwards took issue with the argument that Port Orange’s level of concentrated fluoride in the water supply, around .6 milligrams per liter, is lower than other cities and below the U.S. Public Health Service recommended .7 milligrams per liter limit.
“Focusing on the concentration levels overlooks the fact that it is the total daily dose of fluoride that causes toxicity,” Edwards said. “As compelling as the research is, that should not be the main focus of this discussion.”
The most critical part of the issue, she argued, “is that our citizens currently do not have the ability to opt out of something being added to their water for medical purposes.
“No one should be subjected to a medical intervention without having the freedom to make the decision for themselves, especially when it comes to something as fundamental as the water we drink,” she added.
Several other residents echoed Edwards’ call for individuals to be able to choose what goes in the water they and their families drink, with many adding that access to fluoride treatment can be available through other means.
Dr. Helen Smillie, a Port Orange dentist, said she has seen what water fluoridation can do to help the community’s oral health, as well as the negative sides of no fluoridation.
“It’s traumatic for children whenever they need to get dental work done,” Smillie said, adding that most children are more comfortable seeing a pediatric dentist, as opposed to coming to a general practice office. “Even with a great pediatric dentist here in town, access to care is still a big issue that we struggle with.”
National organizations and medical groups such as the American Dental Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have stood by their view that water fluoridation in the U.S. is safe and effective in preventing tooth decay in children and adults.
Dr. Athas Kometas said has been in practice for almost 40 years, even before the city had adopted water fluoridation, when he “saw the fillings that were being done.”
“But what gets me is why the hell am I here?” Kometas said. “I stand to gain from the fluoride being removed from the water, because I know first-hand we will have more cavities. But I actually believe I want to help my patients … . And I really want to help the patients who can’t afford the care.”
He suggested the city consult its planning and zoning officers if they decide to remove fluoride from the water supply, “because you are going to need twice as many dentists.”
Original article online at: https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/volusia/2025/03/20/port-orange-to-keep-water-fluoridation/82519055007/