Portland is consumed by the debate in advance of the May 21 vote on fluoridation. It’s become a bitter battle with hype, propaganda, and distortion on both sides. While we’d like to bring you the absolute final truth on the fluoride controversy, that may be a little beyond the scope of Your Car Matters. However, we can do our best to give you the most sensible arguments we can find on both sides.
There’s only one real source when it comes to polite, dispassionate discussion of public policy… Canadians.
Calgary was wrestling with the fluoridation question in 2011, so the CBC put together two doctors to calmly and respectfully discuss the issue. Dr. Robert C. Dickson is a family physician who led the anti-fluoridation campaign in Calgary, and Dr. Lynn Tomkins is a Toronto dentist and president of the Ontario Dental Association who supported fluoridation. Click here for their debate, in both text and video.
But Americans are rarely content with just a rational search for the truth. If the adversarial system is more your style, let’s line up a real knock-down-drag-out debate to get at the truth…
In this corner, The American Dental Association, premiere business organization for America’s dentists. They’re in favor of fluoridation, and put out a 71-page booklet supporting their position…
“Fluoridation Facts is a comprehensive encyclopedia of fluoridation facts taken from over 350 scientific references. Fluoridation Facts includes information from scientific research in an easy to use question and answer format on the topics of effectiveness, safety, practice and cost-effectiveness of fluoridation.”
And in that corner, The Health Way House, a group based in San Marcos, CA, who put out a point-by-point refutation of the ADA’s booklet…
“In The Fluoride Debate, we have juxtaposed the arguments presented by the American Dental Association (ADA) with comments from many of the independent scientists who have examined the issue with an open mind. We believe that if people take the time to read and study both sides of the fluoridation debate — especially the science that has emerged over the last ten years — they will be appalled by the practice of putting this known toxic substance into the public drinking water.”
So now you have all the truthiest facts available. Read up, make your best decision, and get out and vote!
