Fluoride dominated the discussion at the City of Poughkeepsie Common Council meeting on Feb. 19.
“I am not here to discuss the pros or cons,” said Dr. Gerry Pozzi-Galluzi, a professor in allied health and biological sciences at Dutchess County Community College. “I am here tonight to share with you, as a health scientist and health provider, what I know about one of the most prevalent infectious diseases that is affecting individuals.”
Her concern? Tooth decay. Pozzi-Galluzi holds a doctorate in health sciences from Columbia University, has worked and taught in the areas of both medicine and dentistry and said she has seen firsthand the effects of the disease.
“I have seen how tooth decay causes lost school hours each year. I have witnessed that early tooth loss due to tooth decay can result in poor nutrition, impaired speech development and reduced self-esteem,” she said. “Without fluoride treatment, it is estimated that half of all children will have dental decay by the second grade.”
For more than half a century Poughkeepsie’s water supply was fluoridated, but in 2005 fluoridation stopped. Officials say that the halt was due to equipment problems, and not because of concerns about fluoride’s impact on health. The problems were corrected, and last June, after a two-year absence, fluoride was reintroduced to the water supply. Just last month, though, the city’s Water Board overturned the June decision, and removed fluoride again.
Water Board vice chairman Frank Mora voted against the initial reintroduction.
“I’ve spent between 100 and 150 hours researching what people are calling ‘fluoride,’” he said Tuesday. “People say that it’s been done for 150 years, so why shouldn’t we continue to do it? If that rang true, we’d still have lead in our gasoline, and we’d still think smoking was good for us.”
According to Mora, his young son has been diagnosed with dental fluorosis, a condition that occurs as a result of overexposure to fluoride.
“Fluoride in the water is a public health benefit we shouldn’t throw out too easily,” countered Dr. William Kirtland. Kirtland has been a dentist for 34 years and has a practice in Hyde Park. He said he has spoken out about this issue in the past. “We should incorporate fluoride back into the water here.”
Dutchess County Health Commissioner Dr. Michael Caldwell agreed.
“I have to say, I personally have been very pleased with the Poughkeepsie water,” he began. “We want people to drink public water, and I think one of our problems is that people don’t drink enough water. When I first learned about the Water Board’s decision, I was disappointed.”
Caldwell, along with others, is concerned about the effects this decision may have on the young, the elderly, the infirm and the poor, who all account for a major portion of Poughkeepsie’s population. Without fluoride in the drinking water, many speculate that residents will not get the fluoride they need, which may lead to costly dental problems, which in turn can lead to further, more serious health risks. Others are worried about the chemical’s affect on infants, and the possibility of the additive reacting with other water additives.
According to Pozzi-Galluzi, the key to proper fluoridation depends on concentration.
“Optimal concentration,” she said, “means approximately one part per one million parts. That’s like saying, ‘One glass of fluoride to every one million glasses of water.’”
“I think this was done without a real plan, or the plan was, ‘You’re on your own – good luck,’” said Caldwell, who plans to investigate whether or not he has the legal authority to overturn the Water Board’s decision. “The decision is wrong and it should be overturned.”