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2 June 2006
Yass celebrates 50 years of fluoridation
Story published in Yass Tribune
This year we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the fluoridation of public water supplies.
Fluoridation was first introduced into mainland Australia in 1955 in Yass. The earliest fluoridation Australia wide was in Beaconsfield in Tasmania in 1953. The official “turning on” of the fluoridated water supply in Yass was on June 22 1956.
Two figures were instrumental in persuading Yass Council to introduce fluoride into the Yass water supply. They were Dr Sydenham Dobbin AM and Dr David Graham MBE.
Fluoridation had been well tested overseas.
Media Link, a video news release company from Sydney, was in Yass on Wednesday May 31 to film Dr Sidney Dobbin recounting the process which those in favour of fluoridation had to go through to convince councillors that fluoridation was best for Yass. He acknowledges the contribution of Dr David Graham, and of those who kept the movement alive when Dr Graham became ill.
Dr Dobbin describes the condition of the teeth of his patients when he came to Yass as appalling. Weekly, he would have to perform dental operations at the hospital under anaesthetic to remove rotten teeth. Children’s teeth would decay at an early age, and adults would have false teeth or missing teeth.
Now, he believes most Yass residents have excellent teeth, and that older people in Yass visit the dentist only periodically for a filling.
“Even a few years after the introduction of fluoridation,” he said, “children’s teeth had improved markedly.”
The anniversary will be marked with a luncheon in Yass on June 21 of this year, with councillors and key community members who were involved in the original fluoridation connection. The video, which was commissioned by the Australian Dental Association (NSW branch) will be given its first showing at the luncheon.
An educational video will also be produced, explaining why water is fluoridated and its health benefits.
Professor Robin Woods MBE notes that fluoridation in Yass was the forerunner of extensive fluoridation across New South Wales and then Australia.
Professor Woods points to the link between general good health and fluoridation. “The Australian National Institute of Health and Welfare has recently released data to show that the longevity of Australians has increased from 1985 to 2002 by 15 years. Life expectancy is a measure of general health, coupled with the extent of fluoridation. There can be no question of the safety of the measure.”
Professor Woods believes that experience in Yass has established the effectiveness of fluoridation and has gone a long way to eliminating dental caries.
The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention describes fluoridation as one of the ten greatest public health achievements of the twentieth century.
Dr Dobbin agrees, calling fluoridation one of the greatest steps forward in preventive medicine in the twentieth century.
Some facts about fluoridation
World wide, some water supplies naturally contain fluoride.
In China, for example, 15 per cent of the population, around 200 million people, use fluoridated water, all of which is fluoridated naturally.
Australia supplies 61 per cent of its population with fluoridated water, around 150 000 of whom drink naturally fluoridated water.
Singapore and Hong Kong have 100 per cent of their water supply “adjusted” to be fluoridated, the United States 64 per cent, just above Australia, while the UK has only 10 per cent fluoridated.
All shire and city councils have the power in Australia to make decisions regarding fluoridation. There are currently discussions about fluoridation of water taking place in coastal northern NSW and in the Toowoomba area of Queensland.
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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