Tagged: community water fluoridation

Featured image: Preempting the annual misrepresentation of NZ dental health data by anti-fluoride activists

Preempting the annual misrepresentation of NZ dental health data by anti-fluoride activists - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • Jan 23, 2019 •

The latest NZ school dental service data again confirms that community water fluoridation is effective. The data show benefits of up to about 30% improvement in oral health. But, anti-fluoride activists will, once again, reject this evidence and instead cherry-pick the data to support their claims. The NZ Ministry of Health (MoH) has posted the latest summary of child dental … Read More

Featured image: Fluoridation: Another study shows stopping fluoridation bad for child tooth decay

Fluoridation: Another study shows stopping fluoridation bad for child tooth decay - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • Dec 20, 2018 •

  Stopping community water fluoridation in Alaska’s capital city, Juneau, caused an increase in child tooth decay In the last week, Windsor in Ontario, Canada, voted to reinstate community water fluoridation (CWF) 5 years after it was stopped because of opposition. This time the City Council was swayed by the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit’s Oral Health 2018 Report which found the percentage … Read More

Featured image: Anti-fluoridation activists buy scientific credibility using a predatory publisher

Anti-fluoridation activists buy scientific credibility using a predatory publisher - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • May 30, 2018 •

A group of well-known anti-fluoride activists have just published some new research. Well, this is what their social media publicity will tell us. In fact, this is not new research. It is simply the republication of a shonky paper from two years ago as a  chapter in a book produced by a predatory open access publisher. It is a clear example … Read More

Featured image: Not just another rat study

Not just another rat study - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • May 09, 2018 •

A new high-quality study of the effect of fluoride on the memory and learning behaviour of rats has produced definitive results. Anti-fluoride campaigners had great hopes this study would bring an end to community water fluoridation (CWF) – but their hopes have been dashed. The study showed no effect of fluoride on the memory, learning and motor skills of rats thus reinforcing the consensus … Read More

Featured image: Paul Connett “updates” NZ MPs about fluoride

Paul Connett “updates” NZ MPs about fluoride - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • Feb 22, 2018 •

 Data from Bashash et al., (2017). Despite a statistically significant relationship of child IQ with mothers prenatal urinary fluoride, this explains only about 3% of the huge scatter in the data. I haven’t followed the latest speaking tour of Paul Connett – organised by the local Fluoride Free NZ organisation. But I watched a TV interview with him this … Read More

Featured image: What’s with the anti-fluoridationist promotion of dental health programmes?

What’s with the anti-fluoridationist promotion of dental health programmes? - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • Sep 11, 2017 •

Anti-fluoride campaigners often promote dental health programmes which they argue are alternatives to community water fluoridation. But seem not to understand that these programmes usually include fluoride dental treatments. It’s probably a result of some tactical thinking – “let’s promote a positive message to overcome the publicly perceived negativity associated with our opposition to a social health policy like fluoridation.” In fact, some New Zealand … Read More

Featured image: Non-fluoridated Christchurch does not have better teeth than fluoridated Auckland

Non-fluoridated Christchurch does not have better teeth than fluoridated Auckland - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • Feb 07, 2017 •

It seems every time anti-fluoride propagandists present data it is either cherry-picked, distorted or misleading. Often all three. So it is hardly a surprise to find local anti-fluoride propagandists are telling porkies again. They have been promoting this graphic claiming it shows people in “non-fluoridated Christchurch have “better teeth.” But the graphic is based on naive cherry-picking of the data, it ignores the effect different ethnic … Read More

Featured image: Adults benefit from community water fluoridation as well as children – new research

Adults benefit from community water fluoridation as well as children – new research - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • Jan 24, 2017 •

A new Australian study confirms that lifetime access to community water fluoridation (CWF) is associated with reduced tooth decay for adults – at least in the age groups 15 – 34 years and 35 – 44 years. The study is reported in the paper: Do et al., (2017). Effectiveness of water fluoridation in the prevention of dental caries across … Read More

Featured image: Premature births a factor in cognitive deficits observed in areas of endemic fluorosis?

Premature births a factor in cognitive deficits observed in areas of endemic fluorosis? - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • Jan 20, 2017 •

Anti-fluoridation activists are soon likely to be promoting a new paper reporting a study which found a relationship between maternal (in utero) exposure to fluoride and cognitive development delay in infants. Could the increased incidence of premature births explain cognitive deficits observed in areas of endemic fluorosis? Image credit: New Kids-Center. Of course, they will be unlikely … Read More

Featured image: More nails in the anti-fluoridation myths around IQ and hypothyroidism

More nails in the anti-fluoridation myths around IQ and hypothyroidism - Open Parachute

Ken Perrott • Jan 16, 2017 •

A new Canadian study shows no relationship of cognitive deficits or diagnosis of hypothyroidism with fluoride in drinking water. This work is important because it counters the claims made by anti-fluoride campaigners. While the campaigners cite scientific studies to support their claims, those studies are usually very weak, or irrelevant because they involve areas of endemic fluorosis where drinking … Read More