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THE LAW OFFICES OF
Patrick John Sweeney, P.C.
Patrick John Sweeney
Attorney at Law
1549 SE Ladd
Portland, Oregon
Portland:
Hillsoboro:
Facsimile:
Email:
(503) 244-2080
(503) 244-2081
(503) 244-2084
Sweeney @ PDXLawyer.com
August 29, 2012
Public Health Debate
According to Kaminski, fluoride life,” she said.
treatments have yet to be regulated
The benefits of water fluorida­
by the Food and Drug Administra­ tion, however, have been known for
tion, which comes as a surprise to more than 65 years, said Snyder.
many residents throughout the
In 1945, Grand Rapids, Mich.,
country.
added fluoride to its municipal wa­
She disagrees with the premise ter system, which catalyzed rates of
that fluoride in the water will help tooth decay in the area’s children to
low income families.
* drop dramatically, he said. Since
“Fam ilies and individuals who then, hundreds o f studies have
lack a proper diet that is low in shown the effectiveness o f commu­
calcium are especially susceptible nity water fluoridation in reducing
to the harm o f fluoridation,” she tooth decay.
said. “The other thing is that low
A ccording to the A m erican
income fam ilies d o n ’t have the D ental A sso c ia tio n , ev id en ce
option of avoiding fluoridated shows that water fluoridation re­
water. They c a n ’t buy bottled duces tooth decay by 18 to 40
c o n t i n u e d f r o m fron t
high level of tooth decay amongst
resident children.
The support represents a major­
ity on the Portland City Council.
Community supporters include
the Everyone Deserves Healthy
Teeth Coalition, which is made up of
several groups, including the Afri­
can American Health Coalition, the
Oregon Health and Sciences Uni-
versity American Medical Student
Association chapter and the Urban
League of Portland, to name a few.
Other residents and activists,
however, remain strongly opposed
to the plan, which they believe im­
parts unnecessary health risks and ‘f
violates an individual ’ s right to con­
sent to medicinal intake.
The
opponents point
ic vpuuiicin;»
puiui to
io numer­
iiuiner-
• ,/
studies,
which
have
shown
ous
serious, adverse health conse- n f f h j n r i s l n t i n n
quences from fluoride ingestion.
J lU U f lU U U U n .
“Families and individuals who lack
a proper diet that is low in calcium
are especially susceptible to the harm
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U N IVER SITY OF OREGON
Oregon Citizens for Safe Drink­
ing Water, a non-profit organiza­
tion, is leading the charge against
fluoridation. The group says its goal
is to protect the drinking water of all
Oregonians through education and
advocacy work specifically aimed
to keep fluoride compounds and
toxic chemicals out of the public
drinking supply.
K im b erly
K am in sk i, the
organization’s executive director,
calls fluoride a waste product of the
water, and transport bottled wa-
ter— especially if taking public
tran sp o rtatio n .”
She adds that lower income popu-
lations don’t have the option of
purchasing expensive filtration sys-
terns. “There is not a choice. When
you put it in water— all of the wa-
ter— we swim in it, we bathe in it, and
we water our gardens in it.”
She also claims that fluoride
Fluoridated water is the only way
to ensure equal protection fo r all
children's teeth, and it's safe and
beneficial fo r everyone in our
COmm aril tV
~ Joseph Santos-Lyons of the Asian
Pacific American Network of Oregon
phosphate fertilizer industry,
“It contains contaminates, such
as lead and arsenic; it is highly acidic
and there are concerns about it
leeching lead and copper from
plumbing,” she said.
The group’s website claims there
have been cases of fluoride poison­
ing found in industrial workers.
would negatively impact salmon and
other aquatic species because the
compound doesn’t break down, and
therefore accumulates in the envi-
ronment.
“We only drink one percent of it,
so 99 percent goes down the drain,
where it enters our ecosystem. We
know it has toxic effects on aquatic
, • i
i
»
i
- Kimberly Kaminski, Oregon
Citizens for Safe Drinking
Water Executive Director
percent, because it strengthens
the teeth and protects them from
bacteria growth.
According to the Everyone De­
serves Healthy Teeth Coalition,
dental decay accounts for 30 per-
cent of all health care costs for chil-
dren, and dental-related emergency
room visits by Oregon's Medicaid
enrollees increased 31 percent in
the past few years, taking a tremen­
dous toll on healthcare costs.
“Dental decay affects all chil­
dren, and low-income families and
communities of color are hit espe­
cially hard,” said Joseph Santos-
Lyons of the Asian Pacific Ameri­
can Network of Oregon. “Fluori­
dated water is the only way to en­
sure equal protection for all children's
teeth, and it's safe and beneficial for
everyone in our community.”
Still, opinions continue to run
high throughout the city,
They say everyone is doing it,
but most of the world doesn’t do it,
said Kaminski.
Opponents are planning to file a
ballot measure to slop the fluorida-
tion effort. A City Council vote on
the issue is planned for Sept. 12.
*
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