Some have hypothesized that community water containing sodium silicofluoride and hydrofluosilicic acid may increase blood lead (PbB) concentrations in children by leaching of lead from water conduits and by increasing absorption of lead from water. Our analysis aimed to evaluate the relation between water fluoridation method and PbB concentrations in children. We used PbB concentration data (n=...

Community water fluoridation is a WHO recommended strategy to prevent dental carries. One debated concern is that hydrofluorosilicic acid, used to fluoridate water, contains arsenic and poses a health risk. This study was undertaken to determine if fluoridation contributes to arsenic in drinking water, to estimate the amount of additional arsenic associated with fluoridation, and compare this t...

UNLABELLED Water fluoridation, is the controlled addition of fluoride to the water supply, with the aim of reducing the prevalence of dental caries. Current estimates suggest that approximately 370 million people in 27 countries consume fluoridated water, with an additional 50 million consuming water in which fluoride is naturally occurring. A pre-eruptive effect of fluoride exists in reducing ...

BACKGROUND The objective of this paper was to report on the level of support for water fluoridation among parents of primary school children in Lithgow and on the socio-demographic and oral health factors that may have influenced this support. METHODS As part of a survey in Lithgow of the oral health status of school children, their parents were asked to complete an oral health-related questi...

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this research was to assess the local cost savings resulting from community water fluoridation, given current exposure levels to other fluoride sources. METHODS Adopting a societal perspective and using a discount rate of 4 percent, we compared the annual per person cost of fluoridation with the cost of averted disease and productivity losses. The latter was the produ...

OBJECTIVE There is much controversy over the fluoridation of community water supplies. This study surveyed the informational content of internet sites on the World Wide Web (WWW) regarding water fluoridation. METHODS One hundred websites were identified and 59 were evaluated with a 6 point scoring system using predetermined criteria. RESULTS Of these 59 sites, 54% recommend water fluoridati...

OBJECTIVES Despite a Commission of Inquiry into water fluoridation recommending the fluoridation of public water supplies to the optimal fluoride concentration of 0.7 ppm, as well as regulations for the introduction of water fluoridation which compel water providers to fluoridate public water supplies, no artificially fluoridated water scheme exists in South Africa. In view of concerns expresse...

BACKGROUND Optimal (1ppm) water fluoridation is seen as the most socially equitable way to prevent dental caries, however concerns about the safety of fluoridation are periodically raised. METHODS Research on effects on bone published since the 1991 National Health and Medical Research Council report on water fluoridation was reviewed. RESULTS Thirty-three studies were identified. Adverse e...

Fluoridation — Continued i of community drinking water is a major factor responsible for the decline in dental caries (tooth decay) during the second half of the 20th century. The history of water fluoridation is a classic example of clinical observation leading to epidemiologic investigation and community-based public health intervention. Although other fluoride-containing products are availab...

The overall reduction in caries prevalence and severity in the United States over recent decades is largely due to widespread exposure to fluoride, most notably from the fluoridation of drinking waters. Despite this overall reduction, however, caries distribution today remains skewed, with the poor and deprived carrying a disproportionate share of the disease burden. Dental caries, like many ot...