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12 September 2006
Proposed addition of fluoride to bottled water is telling
The move by the bottled water industry to add fluoride to its product reflects the reality that fluoridated water is the most practical means of gaining the oral health benefit this mineral provides.
Australian Dental Association Queensland Branch President Dr Robert McCray said the bottled water industry flagged several months ago that it would apply to Food Standards Australia and New Zealand to offer this option for consumers.
“It would be a positive move if fluoridated water becomes available in bottles, but it is doesn’t take away from the fact that Queensland water supplies are still largely unfluoridated,” Dr McCray said. “Bottled fluoridated water will still only benefit the minority of people who drink it.”
The tragedy is that each year in Queensland, 2000 children aged under six have tooth decay so severe that they require a general anaesthetic to undergo dental repair work.
“These statistics are a shameful reflection on those who have failed to enable Queensland to join with the 400 million people worldwide who enjoy the safe and effective benefits of fluoridated water.”
Dr McCray said 15 million Australians in all other states of Australia have access to fluoridated water on tap, but Queensland is still talking in circles about this practise which is regarded as one of the top 10 public health achievements of the 20th century by the US Centres for Disease Control.
He said reputable surveys in 2004 and 2005 show that the majority of Queenslanders want water fluoridation.
The ADAQ is lobbying for water fluoridation to be introduced in Queensland cities in an effort to help overcome ongoing economic and personal oral health disadvantage that has stemmed from the state’s long-term failure to provide fluoridated water for most residents.
“The failure to fluoridate has led to an epidemic of preventable tooth decay in Queensland, which has brought public sector dentistry to near breaking point.”
All of the information included on this web site is accurate to the best of knowledge of the Australian Dental Association (Queensland Branch). To make the text more readable for non-scientists, ADAQ has deliberately minimised attributions and links to supporting files or scientific attachments. However these sources are readily available if required and many can be found via www.health.qld.gov.au/fluoride. |
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Give Queenslanders something to smile about