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Fluoridation of West Yorkshire water

From Vivienne H

Sunday, 24 October 2021

One of the many new rules the government has slid past during lockdown, is the regulation requiring all water companies to add fluoride to the domestic water supply.

Whenever this has been proposed in the past, Yorkshire Water has been persuaded not to do it. This time, it appears they won’t have a choice.

I sent a Freedom of Information request asking the government to specify the date on which this will begin; how many parts per million they propose to add; whether the source of the fluoride is industrial waste & if not, whence it’s derived; & what monitoring of local post-fluoridation health they propose to do.

Today I received a form letter saying the Dept of Health & Social Care is too busy to respond to individual enquiries. 

They appended an email address for complaints, so I used it to say I didn’t consider that response acceptable. The email was returned as Undeliverable. 

If I’m the only person who cares about this I won’t pursue it. But for one thing, people with hypothyroidism need to know that for some years, fluoride was used to treat an excess of thyroid hormones because it inhibits thyroid function. If you use fluoridated water in drinks, food and for bathing, day after day, it’s going to have the same effect. A 2015 study confirms this: Water fluoridation in England linked to higher rates of underactive thyroid.

People with kidney problems may also have cause for concern.

I find it objectionable that the government is forcing this on everyone with the justification that fluoride is good for children’s teeth. 

There’s certainly some evidence for that,  but the studies I’ve seen emphasise that topical application is the most effective, ie putting fluoride in toothpaste. Other dental practitioners argue that vitamin D protects oral health better than fluoride. 

There is certainly insufficient evidence that forcing everyone to ingest fluoride on a permanent basis is risk-free, even for those not already in vulnerable groups. Is anyone else interested in taking this up with the Council?

From Josephine Hallgarth

Sunday, 24 October 2021

I object to bring forcefully medicated with fluoride.

I agree that the government's response is not acceptable. If they have the time to pass legislation adding chemicals to our water they ought to be able to prove they are doing it in a responsible way.

From Anne Knight

Tuesday, 7 December 2021

I'm concerned about this. Does no one remember how Dennis Edmundson from Pecket Well fought this, all the letters he wrote to the Halifax Courier? I brought the subject up with Josh Fenton Glynn on Twitter but he didn't seem to know what I was on about. Medication without consent is wrong, especially with something so potentially damaging as fluoride. The fact that the majority don't know this is happening is worrying.

From Jae Evans

Tuesday, 7 December 2021

I agree with all the aforementioned comments: this is potentially a danger to our health.  It concerns me greatly.

It is completely unnecessary and just side lines or ignores the longer term issues around public health. When the government has systematically, cut NHS Dental funding over decades, making access to a Dentist impossible for some and difficult for others. When our nation seemingly, has a ubiquitous culture of exposing children to all manner of rubbish: sugar, chemicals, fizzy drinks and sweets and when vending machines are placed in schools selling all this rubbish: the government's policy plan is to poison us all with yet more chemicals.

I am certainly not apathetic but I have 'fought' this twice before and I simply don't have the energy to do so again.  I sincerely hope someone will take up this battle because this is what it will undoubtedly be - a battle.  Yet it can be done. There is always hope. Good Luck!  

From Vivienne H

Saturday, 11 December 2021

Shall we try involving the GP practices in this? A bit of collective action is required here. If one person writes to the Group Practice, they can be dismissed, but if 100 of us do, it would be harder to ignore. If we can get anyone there to express concern, in writing, that would be a start.

We can approach the Council to see if anyone there's interested in helping. However, it is the Secretary of State who has appropriated the power in this matter, so that's the person we will ultimately have to approach. Yorkshire Water pretty much said they have to do as they're told.

I doubt that Craig Whittaker would oppose his Party, but perhaps someone who knows him might suggest it. 

The blurb about the Bill making fluoridation mandatory insists there's no evidence it's harmful. Nelson, telescope, blind eye.

From Andy M

Monday, 20 December 2021

A view here:

Bad science: To fluoridate or not to fluoridate: the saga continues

From George Murphy

Tuesday, 21 December 2021

Thanks Andy M for providing a link to a reputable and recent scientific report on this topic.

It's important to use such sources when arguing about medical and other matters, especially in times like this.

From Jenny S

Tuesday, 21 December 2021

Just for info - the legislation for fluoridisation of water hasn't yet been passed by Parliament. It's part of the dire Health and Care Bill that's currently at the Report stage in the House of Lords. Green Jenny Jones spoke out against this (and other aspects of the Bill) at its recent second reading in the House of Lords. 

From Vivienne H

Thursday, 23 December 2021

Those people referring to the Bad Science article may wish to read an updated article by the same Phillipe Grandjean whose work is cited therein.

Developmental fluoride neurotoxicity: an updated review

Dr Grandjean, an environmental epidemiologist who teaches at the Harvard School of Public Health, as a result of his extensive research now regards fluoridation of water as unnecessary, given that the same protection against dental caries can be achieved by using fluoridated toothpaste. 

More importantly, he has declared that concern about fluoride neurotoxicity, especially in the developing brain of infants where it is associated with lower IQ, is warranted. The same goes for thyroid disorders. He notes that what is harmless to the majority may have adverse effects on susceptible genotypes. 

The bibliography for this article included over 100 studies. So I agree, let's look at the science. But not rely on articles whose findings have been superseded by further studies.

At the least, there are clear risks in compulsory fluoridation and no guarantee that it is safe. The government does not propose to monitor the public health risk by comparing thyroid function, infant development,  or indeed the feminisation of men before and after prolonged exposure.  They will claim that absence of evidence is evidence of absence.

Gene-environment interaction: Does fluoride influence the reproductive hormones in male farmers modified by ERα gene polymorphisms?

Why risk it for a gain that can be achieved by using your preferred toothpaste?

From Jill Robinson

Tuesday, 4 January 2022

I remember Mr. Dennis Edmondson campaigning tirelessly for many years against fluoridation of the water supply. I am no chemist but recall that fluoride (not an essential nutrient) displaces iodine, which is essential, leading to thyroid problems. I accompanied Dennis to a public meeting where an environmental expert from New Zealand who had previously been in favour of fluoridation spoke against it, having reviewed all available evidence. This was in the late 1980s and there will now be many more recent studies, but many other countries were at the time discontinuing fluoridation just as some areas of the UK were adopting it. Consuming less sugary food and drink would improve health in general as well as having a beneficial  effect on dental health. 

From Sue Smithson

Monday, 24 January 2022

 I agree with the comments in relation to this mass medication of whole populations. Please also bear in mind fortification of all flour is also in the pipeline: Folic acid added to flour to prevent spinal conditions in babies.

I've responded to 2 consultations on this over 10 years or so. It leaves people already taking therapeutic doses for medical reasons with few options for eating bread etc.

From Amanda T

Monday, 21 February 2022

If you are not aware a petition has been raised regarding this and the deadline is the end of March 2022. Here is the link.

Spread wide to get the required number of signatures so it can be brought up in parliament.

From Iain Harrison

Thursday, 24 February 2022

Fluoride? Yes. In tap water? No!

The idea of adding this to water is silly.

Far better to add it to the water used to fill cans of pop. 

That way the people who need it will get it, without medicating everyone else.

It's not as if the target group even drinks much water.

From Ms P. Finch

Friday, 25 February 2022

I wonder what role chlorine has in our health? The smell seems to increase every Fri when they test the bacteria level at Gorpley and up the level. Like drinking swimming pool water. Leaving jugs of water to stand for a day reduces it.

From Vivienne H

Wednesday, 9 March 2022

Thanks, Amanda, for the link to the Parliamentary petition. I've signed, but I can see it needs lots more signatures to qualify for discussion by our MPs.

Yorkshire Water is currently being investigated by Ofwat for "serious shortcomings" in sewage treatment. This identified incompetence is another reason not to entrust them with the process of adding fluoride to essential drinking water.

From Andy M

Tuesday, 12 April 2022

Quite a bit of info here. You may choose to see it as biased or not. 

From Vivienne H

Tuesday, 3 May 2022

Here's a recent letter, sent by scientists who disagree with the mandatory fluoridation of the population to the Prime Minister. 

As you see, they claim that the science cited by those in favour is outdated, doesn't take account of significant recent studies, & selectively quotes the Cochrane database meta-analysis, in such a way as to distort it. 

It seems that at the very least, this proposal to put an additive in our drinking water has the potential to do serious harm. It would be easier to prevent that, than to undo it after the burden of toxicity we all carry has been increased. Unpolluted drinking water is a necessity of life.

The Environmental Protection Agency in the USA is currently being sued by a citizens' group in San Francisco for adding fluoride to the water supply. 

Evidence supporting their case will be given by a Harvard epidemiologist who specialises in the study of neurotoxic chemicals, & other academics working in public & environmental health. None of the up to date research included as evidence in this trial is included in our government's discussion of the issue.

It's clear that compulsory fluoridation will at best achieve something of what we already know is done better by fluoridated toothpaste; & that that benefit will come at significant cost to the developing brains of young children, & adults with hypothyroidism and some kidney complaints. 

The cost/benefit ratio doesn't indicate that we should add this wholly unnecessary chemical to our water. Fluoride has no known useful function in the body.  

From Martin Kenneth Tibbetts

Sunday, 8 May 2022

While it is supposed to give some protection against tooth decay , it has been put into water supplies across the country whether we want it of not.

It can lead to yellow discolouring of the teeth- so no longer a nice white smile.

This has been my experience over time.

This can be countered by Tooth Whitening Products, readily available in Pharmacists. But what damage are those chemicals doing to us? So at the end of the day, it's a personal judgement call.

Accept fluouride in water and look a bit orally yellow, or go with a regime of Charcoal based "Tooth Whitening Powder" and chemically based toothpastes recommended to get rid of the charcoal which stains anything.

Never use it when wearing a white shirt before work.

Martin Tibbetts
Birmingham now but former resident in Calderdale