Letter: Facts on fluoride

Struan Stevenson MEP is wrong to call for a boycott of water fluoridation in Scotland and he should check his facts before writing rubbish to the national press (Letters, 6 December).

Tooth decay, with the pain, misery, disruption, disfigurement and embarrassment it causes remains a problem for more than a third of Scottish children.

The suggestion in the final paragraph of his letter that tooth decay is "relatively isolated" is clearly rubbish. The 60 per cent target he mentions was set by the Scottish Government, not the British Dental Association.

In Scotland we already have dental health education for all children through Childsmile (child-smile.org.uk) with fluoride varnish and fluoride toothpaste, and of course NHS dental treatment remains free to all the children of his constituents across Scotland.

Despite these efforts tooth decay remains the most common reason young children in Scotland are admitted to hospital.

If Stevenson had any compassion for Scottish children he would support further attempts to reduce levels of tooth decay, including water fluoridation and the eradication of child poverty.

Finally, if "we have a unique reputation in Scotland for the purity of our water", why has Scottish Water had to invest so much on new water treatment works?

Colwyn M Jones BDS

Dentist

Edinburgh

Struan Stevenson objects to the proposal to fluoridate water supplies in Scotland. Fortunately, since we have never in Scotland been given the opportunity to vote for membership of the EU, the European Parliament has no democratic jurisdiction over public health in Scotland.

He describes fluoride as a "chemical" and seems to be unaware that fluoride is always naturally present at some level in soil and could be described as an essential mineral element necessary for the formation of healthy bones and teeth.

Our ancestors, who obtained water from wells containing water which had percolated through soil, were unlikely to suffer from fluoride deficiency.

In the modern world, most public water is obtained from reservoirs where the water composition is nearly identical with rain water in which the fluoride content is much less than the optimal nutritional level for dental health.

Perhaps Struan Stevenson would also object to the chlorination of public water where there is a possibility of an epidemic of water-borne diseases like typhoid or cholera.

However, his concern with the regulation of the composition of the public water supply is fully justified.

(Dr) David Purves

Strathalmond Road

Edinburgh