Oppose water fluoridation in Tacoma - Letters to the Editor

Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients,  July, 2002  

• E-mail
• Print
• Link

Editor:

I have read with concern the news that Tacoma/Pierce County (Washington State) plans to fluoridate the area's public water supply. In spite of what fluoridation proponents assert, medical! toxicological works describe fluoride as a metabolic poison which accumulates in the body with detrimental effects, such as contributing to tooth and bone damage, impairment of kidney and liver function, and mental impairment (including loss of concentration and memory) like that found in Alzheimer's. In Seattle, where water has been fluoridated for years, I have encountered a number of adults with conditions such as kidney damage, loss of memory/ concentration, and lethargy, who apparently recovered after a couple of months of discontinuing fluoride exposure (via drinking water, hot tubs, toothpaste, dental treatments, etc.)

Fluoride is a hazardous industrial waste which, if manufacturers cannot find a way to sell it, can be quite costly to dispose of. Some can be used in the manufacture of rat poison, insecticides, antibiotics, tranquilizers and anesthetics.

Unlike chlorine, which evaporates out of water which is heated, fluoride evaporates more slowly than water, and thus tends to increase in concentration in heated water. Therefore, water in coffee (particularly in urns kept heated throughout the day), in other liquid ingestibles, and foods cooked in! processed with fluoridated water, can accumulate a higher concentration of fluoride than that in the original tap water. Therefore, when measurements show that fluoride levels in tap water are within limits considered acceptable, the water that is finally ingested (or soaked in -- in a hot tub) may contain a considerably higher level of fluoride than the original tap water.

The public has many potential sources of fluoride exposure such as fluoridated toothpaste, medicines, industrial chemicals (including building-cleaning solutions, glass etching, pesticides/rodenticides). People can also be exposed to foods processed in fluoridated water (such as from California). Taking into consideration that fluorides can be absorbed through ingestion, inhalation and skin absorption, and that there are many potential sources besides fluoridated water, there is no way to know how much fluoride the citizenry is being exposed to through all these sources. When fluoride is added to public water supplies, the amount of exposure per individual to fluoride via tap water alone can vary considerably, depending on how much water is drunk, whether the water has been heated or not, whether or not they cook with fluoridated water, and whether or not they spend time sitting in fluoridated water. Given the toxicity of fluoride, and the fact that it accumulates in the body, the dosage of fluoride to which individuals are exposed via fluoridated tap water cannot be regulated -- or even known, particularly over the long term.

In short, fluoride is a hazardous industrial waste which is costly to administer through public drinking water, which can potentially damage teeth and bones, and contribute to mental deterioration. Administering a toxic substance through the water supply, when the dosage cannot be controlled or even known, seems highly questionable from a medical! health standpoint. Also, I question the ethics of dosing the public with a toxic substance, when many of them may neither need nor desire to take it. Who actually benefits from water fluoridation? The industries producing the waste, certainly. (And perhaps dentists treating damaged teeth; some health professionals and institutions providing care for bone disorders or. Alzheimers?)

It appears to me that the public is much more likely to be hurt than helped by water fluoridation, and I strongly urge Tacoma/Pierce County to rethink its plans to fluoridate its water supply.

Maria Abdin

P. O. Box 21521

Seattle, Washington 98111 USA

Messages 206-860-8928

COPYRIGHT 2002 The Townsend Letter Group
COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group