Ask Your Dentist

Politics vs. public health.

A few Ohio cities are exempt from mandatory fluoridation due to 1970 referenda

Is it time to revisit Wilmington's 1970 vote against fluoride? The city is one of only 22 cities out of hundreds of Ohio cities without fluoridation.

After all, the silly 1960s propaganda that fluoridation was a communist plot has been rendered moot by the fall of the Soviet Union.

Note: The Supreme Court of Ohio rejected plaintiff’s arguments, holding that the prevention of dental caries was a proper public health matter for the city to regulate, and that the introduction of fluoride into the municipal drinking water did not violate plaintiff’s constitutionally protected rights.

Ohio Department of Health

https://www.odh.ohio.gov/odhprograms/ohs/oral/oralprev/fluoridation.aspx

1. Community Water Fluoridation

The ODH has called community water fluoridation“the single most important step a community can take to improve the dental health of its residents.” More than 70 years of research and community experience have shown that fluoridation works.

The following information provides answers to frequently asked questions about community water fluoridation. A one-page fact sheet is also available.

What is community water fluoridation? Fluoride is naturally present in all water. Community water fluoridation is the adjustment of the natural fluoride level in public water systems to an optimal level to prevent tooth decay. In Ohio, most water systems that serve more than 5,000 persons are currently required by law to adjust the fluoride level.

What is the status of community water fluoridation in Ohio? About 91 percent, or 10.5 million Ohioans, are served by public water supplies. Of those, 92 percent are served by systems with adequate fluoride levels. Nationally, Ohio ranks 11^th in the percentage of persons on public water systems receiving fluoridated water. However, about 822,000 Ohioans on public water systems do not receive fluoridated water.

How does the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) promote community water fluoridation? ODH provides information on the safety, benefits and cost of fluoridation and gives technical assistance to communities considering water fluoridation. ODH also recognizes community water systems that have fluoridated for more than 50 years by presenting the National Fluoridation 50 Year Awards. Please see the list of the 2015 recipients, which includes a list of past recipients as well.

Compiled by Paul Hunter