Small North Carolina Town Removes Fluoride from Drinking Supply

Fluoride...the word is one we've all heard and come to take for granted as being a good thing. But is it?

Back in the thirties and forties, studies were done that revealed that children living in communities with optimal fluoride levels in their drinking supply, had significantly fewer cavities. Bear in mind, all water has some fluoride in it. How much is optimal? Those studies indicated , according to a U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services study entitled Review of Fluoride (1991), that "about one part fluoride to one million parts water" offered sufficient protection against tooth decay. In 1945, Grand Rapids, Michigan became the first city in the nation to adjust the fluoride levels in the community's water supply. As more towns and cities across the country made the decision to adjust their own supplies, fluoride just became a "given" and no longer something people even bothered to question. It's interesting to note that the levels to which fluoride is adjusted can differ from community to community and are determined by climate as well. In warmer locations, where people tend to drink more water, the level is reduced.

Recently, my little town of Brevard, here in the mountains of western North Carolina, heard the concerns of one of its citizens regarding the continued use of flouride in the town's drinking supply. Ed Daigle, a distinguished looking elderly gentleman who bears more than a striking resemblance to Wild Bill Hickcock, had done his research and didn't like what he found. He brought his concerns to the town's City Council and put his case before them.