12th February 2007

Dear Sir

A report in last week's issue (Sheffield Telegraph February 23rd) tells us that tooth decay is more prevalent among children in poorer areas of the city, and that dental health in the young, despite the efforts of parents and dentists,has not improved in 10 years. Why? Common sense tells us our high-sugar diet, which has sparked the nation's obesity crisis, is the chief culprit. Sweetened drinks and snacks and highly-processed food which is full of hidden sugar generally costs less in our supermarkets than good,wholesome fare, so poor children suffer more tooth decay. And then there is the drop in the number of NHS dentists in the city, reported in the same issue, due to a new system of dental contracts brought in by the Government which means dentists risk not being paid for work done on the NHS.

So what's the solution? Add a chemical to our water supply, says John Green, the director of public health at Sheffield PTC. Fluoride is a poison which accumulates in the food chain and the human body. It may be safe at very low doses, but if it is added to water, there is no way of controlling how much each adult or child gets. There is also a human rights issue. If fluoride is classed a medicine, we should be given the choice whether to take it or not. If it is in drinking water, we can't do this. (Chlorine is different - the purpose is to purify the water, and most of it evaporates off when water is left to stand).

Green Party Cllr Jillian Creasy initiated a comprehensive scrutiny of this issue in 2004; it was then debated in Full Council and the proposal to add fluoride to Sheffield's water supply was decisively defeated on a free vote, for these very reasons. Wouldn't continuing to promote healthy eating in our schools, working towards closing the poverty gap, and making it worth their while for dentists to treat people who cannot afford to go private be more logical and effective solutions to the problem of tooth decay?

yours

Kathy Aston
Sheffield Green Party