Word: dental
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...natural element found in rocks and groundwater, protects tooth enamel. Since 1945, municipal systems serving 170 million Americans have added fluoride (mostly in the form of hydrofluorosilicic acid) to their water, and the prevalence of cavities in the U.S. has fallen dramatically. "A community can save about $38 in dental-treatment costs for every $1 invested in fluoridation," says William Maas, the CDC's director of oral health. "How many other investments yield that kind of return...
...time they were 12, kids in fluoridated communities averaged only 1.4 fewer cavities than those in non-fluoridated areas. And even in fluoridated cities, severe decay remains rampant among the poor--partly because some 85% of dentists, according to state surveys, reject Medicaid patients. Still, for those with little dental care, water fluoridation makes a difference, contends Bellingham's Curtis Smith. "Twenty percent of our kids account for 80% of the cavities," he says. "With fluoride in the water, they would get a blast every time they drink...
...parsing risks, Bellingham is also weighing an undisputed side effect of ingestion. The CDC recently announced that 32% of American children now have some form of dental fluorosis, a white or brown mottling of the teeth. U.S. health officials see it as a cosmetic issue, largely caused by ill-advised swallowing of toothpaste, while fluoride critics say it shows that children are accumulating too much fluoride overall. The World Health Organization sets a fluoride-safety standard of 1.5 p.p.m.--well below the EPA's 4-p.p.m. rule--partly to prevent enamel fluorosis. And in Western Europe, where the drop...
...fluoridate when they have the power, the electorate is far more divided. Over the past five years, the practice was voted down in 38 of 79 referendums, from Modesto, Calif., to Worcester, Mass. "The Internet is making it light-years more difficult to fluoridate," says Smith. The Washington State Dental Association is backing his $300,000 pro-fluoride campaign. Danelle Weaver and her friends, meanwhile, have raised less than $10,000. But they are undaunted. "People think we are tinfoil hatters," says Weaver, "but we're just average families who take the time to research and want what's best...
...reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends giving Baby a pacifier at bedtime--but not before 1 month of age, when breast feeding is firmly established, and not after 1 year, to avoid dental problems. The Academy's updated guidelines also advise parents always to place babies on their back (not on their side) and in their crib (not in your bed) to sleep...