Madison Utilities to hold public meeting on water fluoridation decision

Madison Utilities is holding a public meeting to discuss water fluoridation, after announcing plans to stop adding fluoride to the city’s drinking water by June 15.

The announcement has stirred up controversy among residents, hence Madison Utilities’ scheduled meeting. Here’s more:

Madison Utilities meeting set for May 13

The meeting come on the heels of an announcement April 15 that Madison Utilities plans to stop adding fluoride to the city’s drinking water by June 15. The Madison Utilities Board voted unanimously to approve the change.

Here are some details on the public meeting:

The meeting will be held May 13 at at 5:30 p.m. at the Madison Utilities main office at 101 Ray Sanderson Dr, Madison, AL 35758.
While the meeting is open to the public, only residents who receive water service from Madison Utilities may speak during the meeting.
Those who wish to speak at the meeting must submit a request my 3PM May 9. (requests can be submitted via email).
Those who cannot attend but wish to submit a question can do so my emailing Connie.Spears@madison.gov.

What to know about the fluoridation debate

Madison utilities — Dentists say adding fluoride to drinking water helps prevent tooth decay. (“dentist vacuum cleaner” by locomomo is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

The issue of fluoridation of drinking water has been a hot topic in recent years worldwide, as some countries have banned the addition of fluoride to drinking water.

According to the National Library of Medicine, “Lately, major concerns about excessive fluoride intake and related toxicity were raised worldwide, leading several countries to ban fluoridation. Health-care professionals and the public need guidance regarding the debate around fluoridation.”

However, most health organizations say the addition of fluoride to drinking water over the last 80 years has prevented tooth decay and other dental problems, and public health experts with the CDC say that fluoridated water is safe and highly cost effective.

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