22 Facts About Water fluoridation

1.

Water fluoridation is the controlled adjustment of fluoride to a public water supply solely to reduce tooth decay.

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2.

DeWater fluoridation is needed when the naturally occurring fluoride level exceeds recommended limits.

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3.

Water fluoridation reduces cavities in children, while efficacy in adults is less clear.

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4.

The Australian government states that water fluoridation is the most effective way to achieve fluoride exposure that is community-wide.

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5.

Goal of water fluoridation is to prevent tooth decay by adjusting the concentration of fluoride in public water supplies.

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6.

Goal of water fluoridation is to prevent a chronic disease whose burdens particularly fall on children and the poor.

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7.

Some studies suggest that Water fluoridation reduces oral health inequalities between the rich and poor, but the evidence is limited.

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8.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention developed recommendations for water fluoridation that specify requirements for personnel, reporting, training, inspection, monitoring, surveillance, and actions in case of overfeed, along with technical requirements for each major compound used.

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9.

DeWater fluoridation is needed when the naturally occurring fluoride level exceeds recommended limits.

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10.

Studies in the U S in the 1950s and 1960s showed that water fluoridation reduced childhood cavities by fifty to sixty percent, while studies in 1989 and 1990 showed lower reductions, likely due to increasing use of fluoride from other sources, notably toothpaste, and the 'halo effect' of food and drink that is made in fluoridated areas and consumed in unfluoridated ones.

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11.

For example, in Finland and Germany, tooth decay rates remained stable or continued to decline after water fluoridation stopped in communities with widespread fluoride exposure from other sources.

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12.

The effectiveness of water fluoridation can vary according to circumstances such as whether preventive dental care is free to all children.

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13.

All fluoridation methods, including water fluoridation, create low levels of fluoride ions in saliva and plaque fluid, thus exerting a topical or surface effect.

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14.

The Australian government review states that water fluoridation is the most effective means of achieving fluoride exposure that is community-wide.

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15.

Effectiveness of salt fluoridation is about the same as that of water fluoridation, if most salt for human consumption is fluoridated.

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16.

Universal salt Water fluoridation is practiced in Colombia and the Swiss Canton of Vaud; in Germany fluoridated salt is widely used in households but unfluoridated salt is available, giving consumers a choice.

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17.

Milk Water fluoridation is practiced by the Borrow Foundation in some parts of Bulgaria, Chile, Peru, Russia, Macedonia, Thailand and the UK.

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18.

For example, milk powder fluoridation is used in rural Chilean areas where water fluoridation is not technically feasible.

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19.

When Israel implemented the 2014 Dental Health Promotion Program, that includes education, medical followup and the use of fluoride-containing products and supplements, it evaluated that mandatory water fluoridation was no longer necessary, stating "supply of fluoridated water forces those who do not so wish to consume water with added fluoride.

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20.

In other locations, Water fluoridation was used and then discontinued: in Kuopio, Finland, Water fluoridation was used for decades but was discontinued because the school dental service provided significant fluoride programs and the cavity risk was low, and in Basel, Switzerland, it was replaced with fluoridated salt.

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21.

Water fluoridation controversy arises from political, moral, ethical, economic, and safety concerns regarding the water fluoridation of public water supplies.

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22.

Authorities' views on the most effective fluoride therapy for community prevention of tooth decay are mixed; some state water fluoridation is most effective, while others see no special advantage and prefer topical application strategies.

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