Written Answers. - Water Fluoridation.
Ulick Burke
Question:
129
Mr. U. Burke
asked the
Minister for Health and Children
the plans, if any, he has to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Water Supplies) Act, 1960; if he will comment on recent reports on the damage caused by fluoridation and the fact that its use has been discontinued in other countries; if there is uniform use in water systems here; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[11015/00]
The fluoridation of the public piped water supplies is an important programme for the protection of dental health and is subject to the provisions of the Health (Fluoridation of Water Supplies) Act, 1960, and various regulations made under the Act. I do not propose to seek to repeal this Act.
The safety and effectiveness of water fluoridation as a public health measure have been evaluated frequently by the World Health Organisation and other reputable authorities, such as the Health Research Council of the United States, and concerns about adverse health effects have not been substantiated. In October 1999, the Faculty of Public Health Medicine of The Royal College of Physicians of Ireland issued a report which endorsed the safety and effectiveness of water fluoridation. All of the reputable scientific evidence confirms the safety of fluoride when it is available in public piped water supplies at the optimal levels. These levels are the same as those required under the Health (Fluoridation of Water Supplies) Act, 1960.
A side effect of too much fluoride ingested in early childhood while teeth are forming is dental fluorosis. This effect was always known and was accepted as a trade off against the dental benefits. The period of maximum risk is two to five years of age. Drinking fluoridated water within the range 0.8 – 1.0 ppm gives rise to a very small percentage of the population having fluorosis of a mild to a very mild category. This type of fluorosis is almost invisible to the untrained eye. The statutory dosing parameter for fluoride is the level at which the greatest protection against dental decay is achieved while at the same time minimising the risk of fluorosis. The greatest risk factor for fluorosis in children is children's frequent swallowing of amounts of fluoride toothpaste greater than the size of a pea.
The World Health Organisation estimates that approximately 210 million people in 39 countries benefit from artificially fluoridated water. An additional 40 million benefit from water supply which is naturally fluoridated.
The Eastern Regional Health Authority, on behalf of the Department of Health and Children and the health boards, has awarded a contract jointly to Trinity College, Dublin and University College, Cork to advise health boards on an up-to-date status report on all aspects relating to fluoride use including water fluoridation. When advice and recommendations are available from these bodies appropriate consultation will take place to inform future policy on fluoride use for this country.
References:1.“Fluorides and Oral Health” Report of a WHO Expert Committee on Oral Health Status and Fluoride Use (1994). WHO Technical Report Series no. 846. WHO, Geneva.
2."Water Fluoridation and Public Health" (1999). Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, Faculty of Public Health Medicine.
3."Review of fluoride benefits and risks" (1991). US Public Health Service. Report of the ad hoc subcommittee on fluoride. Washington DC: US Government Printing Office.
4."Fluoridation of water and cancer: a review of the epidemiological evidence" (1985). Knox EG, Chairman. Report of the DHSS Working Party. London, Her Majesty's Stationery Office.
5."Fluoride, Teeth and Health" (1976). Report of the Royal College of Physicians, London. Pitman Medical.
6."Health Effects of Ingested Fluoride" (1993). National Health Council, Subcommittee on Health Effects of Ingested Fluoride. Washington, DC, National Academy Press.
7.Harris J. "The Ethics of Fluoridation" (1983). Centre for Social Ethics and Policy University of Manchester.
8.Challacombe SJ. "Does Fluoridation harm immune function?" (1996). Community Dental Health; 13 Suppl 2: 69-71.
9.Freni SC., Gaylor DW (1992). "International trends in the incidence of bone cancer are not related to drinking fluoridated water." Cancer; 70: 611-8.
10.Murray JJ., Rugg-Gunn AJ., Jenkins GN. Eds (1991). "Fluoride in caries prevention". 3rd Edition. Butterworth-Heinemann Ltd.
11."The Effectiveness of Water Fluoridation " (1991). National Health and Research Council. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, Australia.
12.Hillier S., Cooper C., Kellingray S. et al. (2000). "Fluoride in drinking water and risk of hip fracture in the UK: a case control study." Lancet; 355: 265-69.)
