Limerick East): The latest comparative figures for dental treatment levels for the Newry and Dundalk areas show that children across all age groups in Dundalk have significantly better dental health than their counterparts in Newry. For example, five year old children in Newry have on average three decayed, missing or filled baby teeth in comparison to an average of one for five year old children in the Dundalk area. The figures for 12 year olds show that Newry children have on average more than two decayed, missing or filled permanent teeth while Dundalk children have an average of less than one.
These findings are consistent with previous studies which have shown marked differences in the level of dental health between children in Northern Ireland and in the Irish Republic. There is widespread agreement among international researchers that the single most important contributory factor to the better levels of oral health in the Republic of Ireland as compared to Northern Ireland is the fluoridation of public water supplies in the Republic.
The scientific evidence proving the effectiveness of water fluoridation in reducing tooth decay is overwhelming. Extensive studies over the past 50 years have established that individuals whose drinking water is fluoridated show a reduction of up to 50 per cent. In 1992 a study comparing the decay levels of 12 year old children in Dublin and Glasgow showed that the level of decay was 45 per cent lower in Dublin which is fluoridated compared to Glasgow which is non-fluoridated. A recent publication comparing the decay levels for five to seven year old children in 23 countries in Europe shows that Ireland has the lowest level of decay for this age group. It is also the country with the highest percentage of its population receiving fluoridated water.
