SB359 has been filed and is making its way through the legislature. ASDA [Arkansas State Dental Association] President Bob Mason, DMD recently testified before the Senate Public Health Committee about the positive effects of fluoride. Legislators’ comments included:
“The support of the ASDA has been critical…I applaud the efforts of dentists and the ASDA…This doesn’t benefit the dentist financially, which impresses me regarding the concern dentists truly have for the health of the people”
Dr. Mason’s comments included some of the following facts:
- Fluoride is present in ALL water systems in the world. By definition, fluoridation is the upward adjustment of that amount to a level proven to prevent tooth decay.
- Community water fluoridation is safe, effective and economical. Fluoridation has been proven in more than 65 years of research and practical application in the U.S.
- Fluoridation adds no taste, color or smell to the water.
- Fluoridation can prevent from 35% to 65% of tooth decay.
- Fluoride works in two ways: when swallowed, it becomes part of the tooth enamel forming in a child’s jaw bone, making it physically harder and more resistant to decay. As a topical effect from the fluoridated water washing over the teeth, fluoride actually repairs newly forming decay, reversing the bacterial attack. This effect makes fluoridation effective for children, adults and the elderly.
- Fluoridation benefits all residents of a water system without regard to age, race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, access to dental care or geography.
- More than 175 million Americans, and 1.7 million Arkansans, are already receiving the benefits of fluoridation.
- Dental health isn’t just about teeth. Dental problems can lead to poor overall health, driving up the cost of health care. Research has linked oral disease to heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.
- The most respected medical and health organizations endorse water fluoridation as a safe, effective way to prevent tooth decay.
Please contact your legislators today and ask them to SUPPORT SB359.
For your legislators and their contact information, click here and enter your zip code.
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