Community Water Fluoridation (CWF)

Statement

The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit’s Board of Directors recommends that the Province of Ontario amend the regulations of the Safe Drinking Water Act. The proposed amendment would require community water fluoridation for all municipal water systems, when source-water levels are below 0.7 mg/L, the Health Canada recommended level for optimal dental benefit (i.e., prevention of tooth decay).

  • Community water fluoridation promotes good oral health; the relationship between poor oral health and poor physical and mental health is clear.
  • Community water fluoridation is essential to minimize tooth decay and help restore and strengthen tooth enamel.
  • Community water fluoridation is recognized as the single most effective public health measure to prevent tooth decay.
  • Community water fluoridation is about equity. It is the most economical way to benefit all residents in the community no matter their income level, education, or employment status.
  • Research has shown declines in tooth decay where community water fluoridation has been introduced.
  • When fluoride is added to the water at the recommended levels, studies have shown there is no link to negative health outcomes.
  • Fluorosis (a cosmetic alteration of the appearance of the tooth enamel) is associated only with areas that have exceeded the recommended concentration of fluoride in the drinking water.
  • For every $1 of spending on community water fluoridation, $38 is saved in future dental treatment.

Recent CWF Position Statements

Global Health experts (e.g., World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control, Health Canada) and scientific evidence support community water fluoridation to prevent tooth decay. The Canadian Dental Association, the Public Health Agency of Canada, and the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association are three of many Canadian health agencies which support for community water fluoridation.


Frequently Asked Questions

Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral that exists in nearly all water sources. Ground water dissolves the fluoride from rocks into the soil and water. Drinking fluoridated water is linked with reduced tooth decay.

The fluoride in drinking water works in two ways. For people of all ages, it works on tooth surfaces. Our mouths contain bacteria that mix with sugars in the foods we eat and the beverages we drink. These bacteria produce an acid that harms our teeth. Fluoride strengthens teeth by neutralizing this acid and protecting our teeth from decay. Fluoridated water also works systemically when young children whose teeth are still forming, consume fluoridated water. Fluoride combines with the minerals on the developing teeth and makes teeth more resistant to decay, especially during the first few years after they come into the mouth. Research has confirmed that systemic use of fluoride increases the concentration of fluoride in the surface enamel of teeth.

For more information on community water fluoridation, visit ilikemyteeth.org.

Community water fluoridation (CWF) is the process of monitoring and adjusting the level of fluoride in drinking water to optimize the dental benefits of preventing cavities. Research has shown that the optimal level for fluoride for cavity prevention is 0.7 milligrams/liter (mg/L) or 0.7 parts per million (ppm). CWF is a global strategy to reduce dental cavities, as many communities around the world have access to CWF.

Internationally, many public health agencies have endorsed CWF, including the World Health Organization, the Canadian Dental Association, and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).

CWF is a cost-effective and equitable method to provide fluoride to the population. This population-based preventive intervention contributes to oral health equity by overcoming common social determinants of health including age, education, income, and access to professional dental care.

For more information on CWF, consult the Government of Canada’s Fact sheet - Community Water Fluoridation.

According to the best available scientific evidence, water fluoridation does not have an adverse effect on human reproduction, fertility or birth rates.

For more information, contact your health care provider or obstetrician.

Yes, infant formula can safely be prepared with water containing fluoride. Parents and caregivers should discuss any questions they may have with their health care providers.

For more information, contact your health care provider or read the American Dental Association’s document called, Fluoridation Facts.

The best available science-based evidence does not establish a causal relationship between drinking water fluoridated at recommended levels and lowered intelligence (IQ) or behavioural disorders in children. A number of systematic reviews and individual studies provide evidence that consumption of optimally fluoridated water at levels recommended in Canada (and the United States of America) of 0.7 mg/L do not lower IQ or cause behavior problems in children.

For an explanation of the research on fluoride and children’s IQ, visit ilikemyteeth.org.

The best available scientific evidence indicates optimally fluoridated water does not adversely effect the thyroid gland or its function.

For more information, read the American Dental Association’s document called, Fluoridation Facts.

The best available scientific evidence indicates that water fluoridation does not cause the early onset of puberty.

For more information, read the American Dental Association’s document called, Fluoridation Facts.

Leading health and medical organizations agree: fluoridated water is both safe and effective. According to the best available scientific evidence, there is no association between human cancer rates and drinking water that is fluoridated at the recommended level.

For more information, read the American Dental Association’s document called, Fluoridation Facts.

The best available scientific evidence has not indicated an association between drinking optimally fluoridated water and Alzheimer’s disease.

Contact your health care provider or local Alzheimer Society if you have any questions about Alzheimer’s.

Yes. Fluoridation is a protective factor against tooth decay throughout one’s lifespan, benefiting both children and adults.

For more information on fluoride and oral health, visit the Government of Canada’s website.

No. There is no scientific evidence to support claims that fluoridated water corrodes water pipes. The acidity or pH of drinking water changes minimally by the process of fluoridating water and will not corrode water pipes.

For more information, read the American Dental Association’s document called, Fluoridation Facts.


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