---

Public Health Law Research (Temple University):

“Fluoride is a mineral that has been proven effective at preventing tooth decay.”

“… In the judgment of a Community Guide expert panel, there is significant evidence to support water fluoridation as an effective public health intervention aimed at reducing tooth decay.”

Richard H. Carmona, MD, Surgeon General under President George W. Bush:

“Water fluoridation is a powerful strategy in our efforts to eliminate differences in health among people and is consistent with my emphasis on the importance of prevention.”

“… Fluoridation is the single most effective public health measure to prevent tooth decay and improve oral health over a lifetime, for both children and adults.”

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation:

“… H. Trendley Dean, a dentist working for the National Institutes of Health, began to study the dental health status of children and adults living in more than a dozen communities with differing levels of fluorides. … During the late 1930s and the early 1940s Dean published his findings in reports issued by the Public Health Service. Subsequently, controlled experiments comparing the incidence of dental decay in children living in communities having fluoridated water with that of children living in non-fluoridated communities showed that the addition of fluoride to public drinking water supplies could reduce dental caries in children by more than 50 percent.”

“It was the single greatest discovery in the history of dental medicine, and the resulting fluoridation of drinking water supplies in many communities in the nation (starting with Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1945) is estimated to have saved hundreds of millions of dollars a year in dental restorations.”

Royal Society of New Zealand:

“Naturally occurring concentrations of fluoride in water in some parts of the world (e.g. parts of China, Africa, and India) are much higher than those found in fluoridated water, and in some of these regions high fluoride intakes are known to cause problems in teeth and bones (dental and skeletal fluorosis). It is important to distinguish between effects of apparent fluoride toxicity at very high intakes, and effects that may occur at the much lower intakes from CWF. Some studies have failed to do so, giving rise to potentially misleading statements
and confusion.”

Tennessee Department of Health:

“Tooth decay is the most common infectious disease among our children and it is preventable.  Good oral health can heighten self-esteem, affect social interactions, impact learning success, reduce medical costs and enhance employability.  Community water fluoridation is the most natural and cost-effective means of protecting residents in a community from tooth decay. Fluoride is naturally present in all water; water fluoridation is the adjustment of fluoride to a recommended level for preventing tooth decay.”

Texas Department of State Health Services:

“The wide implementation of community water fluoridation in Texas has resulted in substantial savings in publicly financed dental care under the Texas Healthy Steps (EPSDT-Medicaid) program. Further savings may be made by implementing community water fluoridation in areas where it is lacking and feasible.”

U.S. Task Force on Community Preventive Services:

“The Task Force on Community Preventive Services recommends community water fluoridation based on strong evidence of effectiveness in reducing tooth decay.”

Utah Health Department:

“The nationwide goal to prevent cavities through community water fluoridation is similar to previous public health efforts to prevent other common health problems. These include adding iodide to salt to prevent thyroid problems, adding iron to infant formula to prevent anemia, adding Vitamin D to milk to prevent rickets, adding niacin to flour and other foods to prevent pellagra, and adding folic acid to cereal grains products to prevent birth defects.”

“Each of these public health efforts represents situations where a nutritional additive is provided to everyone or to large target populations since it is impossible to individually identify and effectively treat the significant number of people who are at risk.”

Vermont Medical Society:

“… frequent exposure to small amounts of fluoride enhances developing enamel and encourages remineralization, replacing minerals that bacteria dissolve from the enamel surface of teeth.”

“… the Vermont Medical Society endorses fluoridation as an important community commitment to the oral health of its children and adults and it affirms the value of continuing fluoridation in community water systems.”

WebMD.com:

“Fluoride helps prevent tooth decay by making the tooth more resistant to acid attacks from plaque bacteria and sugars in the mouth. It also reverses early decay. In children under six years of age, fluoride becomes incorporated into the development of permanent teeth, making it difficult for acids to demineralize the teeth. Fluoride also helps speed remineralization as well as disrupts acid production in already erupted teeth of both children and adults.”

Wisconsin Oral Health Coalition:

“Community water fluoridation is an evidence-based method for the prevention of dental decay throughout life. It has improved the oral health of Wisconsin residents since 1946.”

World Health Organization:

“Fluoride is being widely used on a global scale, with much benefit. Millions of people worldwide use fluoridated toothpaste. They benefit from fluoridated water, salt fluoridation or other forms of fluoride applications …”