A Florida County recently moved to ban fluoride from its drinking water. On Tuesday, the Lee Board of County Commissioners voted to remove fluoride from Lee County Utilities’ drinking water. The February 4 decision only impacts Lee County Utilities customers and is effective immediately. The vote to remove the additive demonstrates a newfound concern about fluoride and its possible health impacts.
Fluoride was historically recommended by the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). However, sentiment toward the substance began to change as Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph A. Ladapo publicly opposed its use. The FDEP now permits communities to decide whether to incorporate the additive into their drinking water.
“It is clear more research is necessary to address safety and efficacy concerns regarding community water fluoridation,” Dr. Ladapo said in a recent statement. “The previously considered benefit of community water fluoridation does not outweigh the current known risks, especially for special populations like pregnant women and children.”
Trump administration nominee for Department of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been a leading voice in skepticism toward fluoride in water. The American Tribune previously reported on a tense interaction between RFK Jr. and a reporter on the topic. “You also talked about fluoride in the U.S. water supply. You would see to ban fluoride in the U.S. water supply?” the reporter asked.
RFK Jr. answered, “I would advise the water districts that are currently using it that there is a lot of new science out there. In fact, there’s a federal judge decision by an Obama-appointed judge on October 4th of this year in which he sent the EPA back to the drawing board and said, you’ve never done the safety studies on it, by the way…”
The reporter interjected, “And so what does that look like without debating, without going back and forth on the science.” Kennedy said, “It’s lowering IQ in our children.” The reporter then asked, “What would you — on January 2025 we’re 3 months away here, what would you actually do?” The former Independent presidential candidate said, “I think fluoride is on it’s way out..”
The reporter further pressed Kennedy, “And how would you make that happen? This is your chance is what you’re suggesting to me. How would you make that happen?” Becoming frustrated with the line of questioning, RFK said, “Listen to what I’m saying! And then I’ll tell you.” Expounding on his stance, Kennedy said, “I think fluoride is on the way out because that court decision, I think the faster that it goes out, the better.”
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RFK Jr. maintained that he wasn’t going to force anybody to remove the substance necessarily, but simply sought to provide accurate advice on its possible health effects. “I’m not going to compel anybody to take it out, but I’m going to advise the water districts about their legal liability, their legal obligation to their service, to their constituents. And I’m going to give them good information about the science. And I think fluoride will disappear,” he said.
Featured image credit: Roger McLassus, CC BY-SA 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/>, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2006-02-13_Drop-impact.jpg