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SHALL WE HAVE FLUORIDATION?

Experiments prove

tooth decay reduced

Shall we have fluoridated water?
What will be the benefits of* flu-
oridated water to the people of
Vancouver and other cities? What,
if any, are the drawbacks to its
use? ;

About 25. years ago it was ob-
served that people living in areas
where the water contained natural-
ly dissolved fluorides had’ a very
low incidence of dental caries,
or tooth decay, as compared with
people drinking non-fluoridated
water.

This observation provided the
first step towards making some
progress in solving one of the
major health problems of our
people, dental health. For it
has been estimated that Canada

as enough dentists at present
to take adequate care of only a
quarter of the dental needs of
our people. :

Even where adequate treatment
is available, the better part of
health care has always been pre-
vention.
is being directed towards this end.
The evidence of naturally fluorid-
ated water is that the addition of
fluorides to drinking water in fluor-
ine-deficient’ areas provides partial
control of dental caries.

x eS
Surveys of communities natur-
ally containing from 0.2 to 5 parts

of fluoride per million parts of},

water have shown reduced. tooth
decay up to 65 percent. These re-
sults inspired experiments which
indicated that at levels of one part
per million (ppm) fluoride reduced

Much medical research |

‘fect teeth as compared with only
l5 percent before fluoridation, 10
years ago. Sixty-five percent re-
duction in dental caries’ has been
observed. with 6-year-olds and
66.3 percent with 7-year-olds.

Although | fluoridated water
must be administered through-

out the early years when teeth
are formed, the effects of fluor-
ide-treatment are felt not only
during childhood.

Children raised on fluoride-.
containing water carry the bene-
ficial effect with them through-
out the rest of their lives, even
though they leave the fluoride
area.

ee *

It has been established beyond
scientific doubt that fluorides re-
duce tooth decay and that in con-
centrations of 1 ppm. fluoride
causes no other serious physical

effects.

A survey in various fluorid-
ated areas in the U.S. covering
some 3,500,000 people, has de-
monstrated that there is no
greater incidence among these
people of cancer, kidney dis-
ease, heart and arterial diseases,
rheumatism, arthritis, bone frac-
tures or any other systemic dis-
ease.

There is, however, one condi-
tion, dental fluoresis, which does
occur in some people who are sub-
jected to a concentration of fluo-
ride in water of 2 or more ppm.
This condition does not appear

tooth decay up to 65, percent.+to be ‘associated with any observ-

Fluoride, in this concentration,

was added to the water at Brant-
ford, Ontario and Grand Rapids,
Michigan.

: These experiments were begun
in 1945 and the data gathered
have corroborated the initial find-
ings.

: At Stratford, Ontario, the water
is naturally fluoridated to the ex-
tent of 1.3 ppm.

Children, of 6-8 years in Strat-
ford show an average of 2 decay-
ed teeth compared to 8 in. chil-
dren of similar age in non-
fluoridated areas: ‘Children of 12-
i4 years had an average of 3 de-
cayed permanent teeth compared
to over 12 in children of the same
age in fluoride-deficient areas.

In addition, it has been observ-
ed that the decay occuring in teeth
of persons drinking fluoridated
water is less severe and develops
more slowly ‘than in others.

~The Brantford experiment has
proved beyond any doubt the
great value of fluoridated water
in preventing tooth decay. _

‘It has been observed that 21
percent of the children have +per-

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ed physical defect and is mani-
fested in mottled and discoloring
of tooth enamel.

Dental fluorosis has been ob-
served in only rare cases, and then
to a very slight degree, among
persons receiving less than 2 ppm.
fluoride in the water.

It is apparent that fluoridated
water is a very éfficient method
of reducing dental caries, and at
relatively small cost. It is estimated
that it costs from $1 to $5 to fluo-
ridate 1 million gallons of water.

For this amount, tooth decay
can be reduced about 65 percent
if the fluoride is administéred
continuously throughout child-
hood. This could considerably
cut down the cost of dental care.

x * =
Among those who oppose fiuo-
yidation are the zealous adherents
of this or that food faddist cult—
and several such cults have sprung
up in Vancouver over the past sev-

eral years.

They claim, as Lydia Arsens,
Social Credit MLA for Victoria
asserted publicly last week, that
fluoride is “rat poison” and there-
fore dangerous to health.” ~

The fact is that many of the
things we eat and drink are high-
ly poisonous, if taken in large
enough amounts and under cer-
tain conditions. But in small
amounts, diluted by the rest of
our dietary intake, these things
are quite harmless to the body.

For example, the tannic acid in
tea, the alkaloids in green plants,
the codeine in headache | tablets
‘and the chlorine in our drinking
water are all poisons in certain
quantities and under certain con-
ditions.

Chlorine, although very poison-
ous, is added to the water we drink
in order to control such scourges
as typhoid fever, cholera and other
water-borne diseases.

s

Similarly, fluorine alone, in high
enough concentration, is very pois-
onous. But in the concentration
of 1 ppm., sufficient to control
tooth decay, it has absolutely no
harmful effects.

The question is asked — why
should we put fluorine in the
drinking water? Why not put it in
foods, just as iodine is put in our
salt in order to control goitre.

Fluoride could be put in our
foods. But this would require
many more years of research to
determine what concentrations
‘and in-what foods the best results
could be achieved. ;

We do have ample experimental
data on administration of fluorides
in drinking water. We already

|know what success can be obtain-

ed in controlling dental caries.
We should, therefore, use this in-
formation for the immediate bene-
fit we can derive. and ‘ask for fluo-
ridation of our water supply.

a diccdwaties 7 B.C.

The extent of uranium discoveries in British Columbia i$
Nine discoveries in all have been re —
ported, from Trail in the south to Atlin in the north, as indicated Dal

illustrated by this map.

i

by the shaded areas on the map.

@ That council go on record in
favor of public ownership of
natural gas distribution.

That council initiate a joint
council of all Fraser Valley

communities which have not
yet made a decision on this
matter, to establish a joint
committee. {Five Okanagan
cities have already set up a
joint committee fo investi-
gate the possibility of public
ownership.)

That the proposed plebiscite
on a franchise be held at the
regular December civic elec-
tion in order to secure the
most representative expres-
sion of opinion. :

That the plebiscite should
give electors the opportunity
to vote on public ownership
of natural gas distribution.
A copy of the LPP brief was al-
so submitted to Pitt Meadows
municipal council.

Maple Ridge LPP committee is
sending. the brief with a covering
letter to all CCF, ratepayers and
community groups. in the area.”

“Public ownership ‘of natural
gas distribution can be an impor-
tant source of revenue, just as
electric distribution has already
proven to be,” the brief points out.

“Of particular interest in the
Fraser Valley. is the situation in
New Westminster. Despite high
costs because of certain duplica-

BG. Electric which serves cus-

Public distribution
of gas advocated

Public ownership of natural’ gas distribution was advocated in a’ brief submitted
last week to Maple Ridge Municipal Council by a Labor-Progressive party delegatio®:
Council agreed to study the material contained in the brief including these recommendations

City of New Westminster derived
a net income from electric utili-
ties of $449,345 in 1953. .

“This revenue was second only
to the tax on property, and pro-
vided 16 percent of the total rev-
enues of the city. considerably re-
ducing the tax on property own-
ers.”

The brief noted that commercial
power companies are subject to

public utilities are not.

“Municipalities in British Col-
umbia are already facing acute
difficulties in financing their op-
erations,* the brief continued.
“The main source of revenue is
the property tax. The burden of
this tax on the municipal rate-
payer has already in. many cases
reached the breaking point. But
with a big downward trend in
the economy already apparent, and
growing numbers of unemployed,
both municipal financing and the
tax-load are on the brink of crisis.

“In this setting the experience
of the 12 cities in B.C. which
operate their own electric utili-
ties is of special interest. The
cities of Nelson and Fernie de-
rive revenue equal to three-
quarters or more of the proper-
ty tax from their electric utili-
ties. Every one of the 12 cities
enjoy relatively large revenues
from this source, thereby great-

tion of physical facilities with the!
{property tax on their citizens.”

PACIFIC TRIBUNE — APRIL 15, 1955 — PAGE

ly reducing the burden of the

tomers using 5 h.p. or over, and|
the limitation on its market, the'a public power system, where ”

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‘profits are the main objective : ee

income taxes, but publicly-owned |

| Service is the main objective ob

a private system. ‘The more

demand for power,” contended, th?

the lower are the unit costs

distribution.”
istribution a

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rates are reduced the greater the a

brief. “The greater the demand |

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