Fluoridation a 78-Year-Old Blunder

Seventy-eight years ago, on January 25, 1945, dentists convinced government officials to experiment on all Grand Rapids, Michigan, residents to prove that (not if) dosing the public’s water supply with untested sodium-fluoride chemicals would make children's developing teeth cavity-free. It ended prematurely, control city was fluoridated, promoted with PR, and evidence of harm ignored or untested.

Planned to last 15 years, the 1945 study ended prematurely after 6 ½ years.  Teeth of most children born into the experiment hadn't even erupted yet. Muskegon, the non-fluoridated comparison or control city began fluoridating its water in 1951; thereby, negating the experiment.

An American Dental Association (ADA) news release reported, "many communities did not wait for the studies to be completed before starting their own fluoridation efforts.  By 1950, [fluoridation] had the full support of the ADA." This support came without any safety evidence.  

Grand Rapids citizens' health was untested. But Newburgh NY's healthy schoolchildren were examined in another 1945 human experiment, also cut short prematurely. Newburgh kids suffered more bone defects, anemia and earlier female menstruation after 10 years (Journal of the American Dental Association, 1956). These findings were dismissed.

In 1951, dentists strategized ("Proceedings 4^th annual conference of state dental directors") on how to sell fluoridation using  misinformation and misdirection e.g. "We have told the public it works, so we can't go back on that." And "those research people, they can't get over their feeling that you have to have test tube and animal research before you start applying it to human beings."

Edward Bernays, the father of public relations, promoted fluoridation, consulting on strategy for the National Institute of Dental Research. "Selling fluoride was child's play," Bernays told the author of The Fluoride Deception. Bernays said citizens trust medical authority. So Bernays fooled doctors to believe in fluoridation – a tactic used by today fluoridation PR flacks.

Chemical & Engineering News reported: "Rational voices of opposition were suppressed from the start.”  Science justified those fears. Fluoride isn't a nutrient or required for healthy teeth and has serious side effects, rendering fluoridation unnecessary and harmful.

Fluoridation is celebrated  ignoring strong fluoride/brain links, 100 years of damning fluoride/kidney & thyroid research and that cavity experience and inequities increased in the last 20 years despite widespread fluoridation contributing to US children's fluoride-damaged teeth- dental fluorosis – white spotted, yellow splotched teeth afflicting 70% of US children and adolescents).

Instead of putting themselves out of business as predicted 78 years ago, fluoridation has created a new lucrative market for cosmetic dentistry http://tinyurl.com/DentalFluorosisBeforeAfter