AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
Utah is now the first state in the nation where it's illegal to add fluoride to public drinking water after a new law went into effect last week. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has called for other states to follow suit. He questions the safety of fluoride. But dentists in Utah are warning the new ban could lead to a decline in oral health, especially among children. James Bekker is a pediatric dentist and associate dean at the University of Utah School of Dentistry. He joins us now. Welcome to the program.
JAMES BEKKER: Thank you.
RASCOE: So first, can you just tell us, like, what adding fluoride to drinking water - what does that do for teeth?
BEKKER: If fluoride is present in a very small, recommended dose in the water, as teeth are forming in young children, the enamel surface of the teeth is harder and more impervious to getting dental decay. The second way fluoride helps is in a topical way - in your toothpaste, in your mouthwash. So fluoride in the water allows for that formative time in young children to have enamel that is less susceptible to dental decay.
RASCOE: What was your reaction to the bill's passage?
BEKKER: Great disappointment. In the state of Utah, about half of the state has had community water fluoridation, and half of the state has not. And in Utah, just like in other areas of the country, where we have fluoride in the water, we see a lower cavity rate, a lower rate of dental caries. And when you consider that dental caries is the No. 1 reason that children miss school in our country, having a higher rate of dental decay among children is concerning.
RASCOE: Critics of fluoridation say that ingesting the mineral correlates with lower IQ. Is there any truth to that?
BEKKER: So those that oppose fluoride in the water are quoting studies that have flawed data. Anything that shows anything of questionable outcome has been done with fluoride concentrations at a much, much higher level than the recommended dose. But there are no credible studies showing that fluoride in the water at the recommended dosages have any negative health effects.
RASCOE: Another thing that fluoride skeptics have argued is that it should be a choice. Like, if you choose to have...
BEKKER: Right.
RASCOE: ...Fluoride in your toothpaste, then you can do that. If you don't, then that's your choice. Is that enough to get the benefits of fluoride, just getting toothpaste with fluoride in it?
BEKKER: There is a large population of underserved children who have limited access to health care, and they are not going to be able to make the choice to get a fluoride supplement. These are the vulnerable populations where taking fluoride out of the water will have the largest negative effect. You know, we put chlorine in our water for health benefit, to purify our water. Well, that's not a choice issue. Nobody disputes that. Chlorine is a naturally occurring element. Well, fluoride is a naturally occurring element as well. And at a very small, and the recommended dose, it is a health benefit.
RASCOE: If you have a child, how can you get them more fluoride? 'Cause I know with little babies, they can't really get their teeth brushed and they can't have, like, regular toothpaste and stuff.
BEKKER: Right. So if you're in a community that doesn't have fluoride in the water and you have to do fluoride supplements, you don't do anything from birth to six months, and then at that point, you use fluoride drops. All kinds of partners in the state of Utah are working to educate the public and helping them to see what needs to happen now with fluoride out of the water, how they can access the supplements, what the proper dosages are.
RASCOE: Can you get that from just brushing your teeth? 'Cause that seems like a lot of extra work for families.
BEKKER: The benefit is systemic. It has to be in the system to get to the teeth that are forming. So if you're a 3-year-old, you have baby teeth, yes, but you have permanent teeth that are in the bone forming. You can't brush permanent teeth in a 3-year-old that are down in the bone. You've got to get the fluoride to them in a systemic way.
RASCOE: That's James Bekker, a pediatric dentist and associate dean at the University of Utah School of Dentistry. Thank you so much for talking with us.
BEKKER: Wonderful to be with you. Thanks so much. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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