Fluoridation Comes to California City

I previously mentioned that I was once an ostensible state fluoridation engineer.  Because of this, stories related to fluoridation still catch my eye.

This week the Santa Clara Valley Water District, which supplies drinking water to the San Jose, California, approved a plan to fluoridate water.  This won’t be an immediate change.  It will take the Santa Clara Valley Water District two years to upgrade its three water treatment plants.  In addition, several wells operated by the San Jose Water Company will need to be upgraded for fluoride addition.

Fluoride is added to drinking water to prevent tooth decay.  Fluoridation can reduce tooth decay in children up to 40 percent.  An estimated $38 dollars in dental treatment costs is saved for every $1 spent on fluoridation.  Water fluoridation in the U.S. has been common since the 1960s.

Earlier this year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revised recommendations for optimal fluoride doses in drinking water.  You can find more about water fluoridation at the CDC Web→ site or Environmental Protection Agency Web site→.

For this post, I drew heavily on an article by Julia Prodis Sulek on the Mercury News Web site→.