Vol. 517 No. 4
83 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Health and Children if he has considered new evidence and new thinking regarding the fluoridation of water supplies; the plans, if any, he has to review fluoridation of water; if he will establish a forum to consider the differing views on this issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5969/00]
The fluoridation of the public piped water supplies is an important programme for the protec tion 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. The safety and effectiveness of water fluoridation as a public health measure has 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 survey of adult dental health carried out in 1991 found no significant difference in regard to general health status between fluoridated and non-fluoridated areas. The Eastern Regional Health Authority, on behalf of the Department of Health and Children and the eight regional 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.
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8. Challacombe SJ. "Does Fluoridation harm immune function?" (1996). Community Dental Health; 13 Suppl 2: 69-71.
