Letter: "Russian Roulette"Locals need say on fluoride
To the editor:
Sandy, Utah, is the latest American community to have a contaminated drinking water crisis. Due to a mechanical malfunction triggered by a power outage, the fluoridation tap was turned up. Over a period of two days, so much corrosive fluoride entered the system that lead, copper, manganese, iron
and aluminum dissolved out of pipes and fixtures and were consumed by unsuspecting residents. Arsenic was also dangerously high. Arsenic and aluminum are common contaminants in fluoridation chemicals.
After dismissing complaint calls for two days, a water worker went to check that fluoridation equipment on a hunch. He turned off the spigot, but the 3,000 households and multiple schools in this section of Salt Lake City were not notified for another week that they should flush their pipes before using city water.
We don’t know how much fluoride was in the water while the fluoride was being pumped into the system, but we know that it was enough so that there were reports of vomiting and burning throats. We also know that when finally tested, the fluoride concentration was over 100 parts per million. The EPA “do not drink” threshold is 4 ppm and 100 ppm is enough to kill. The copper and lead levels in water were over 26 times in excess of the “do not drink” thresholds set by the EPA.
We also know that following instructions from public health authorities, the head of utilities removed the words “Do Not Ingest” from the fluoride warning letter he was compelled to distribute under federal law. Those same public health authorities also placatingly and falsely promise the residents that there would be no long-term health impact from consuming this contaminated water -- not even for bottle-fed babies and pregnant women who reported vomiting. That was a lie.
Other toxic metals aside, fluoride, like lead, is a developmental neurotoxin -- a brain poison. Even small doses of fluoride during pregnancy or early childhood can subtly damage the developing brain resulting in learning disabilities and the immune system resulting in allergies and autoimmune disease.
Several days of high doses of fluoride most definitely can result in irreparable kidney or thyroid damage to consumers of any age. One community reported a spike in heart attacks during a similar overfeed about 40 years ago, which is consistent with early 1950s reports that observed an increase in heart attacks in cities after fluoridation began. Tracking these long-term health impacts, or indeed even the facts of the overfeeds themselves, isn’t routine. It should be.
Both Manchester and Rockport have fluoridation policy on their town agendas for this spring. However, only selectmen or city councilors can implement the process to end fluoridation once begun under Massachusetts law. Popular votes are non-binding.
Regardless of what you believe about “optimal” concentrations of fluoride in water, there have been three fluoridation accidents in Massachusetts this century out of at least 30 overfeeds across the country. That’s about two accidents a year poisoning tens of thousands of people, leaving many with permanent damage. Fluoridation policy is like a game of Russian roulette; someone always gets hurt. Tell town selectmen and Gloucester city councilors to stop gambling with our water and our health. Tell them to end fluoridation on Cape Ann.
Karen Favazza Spencer
Gloucester
Sandy, Utah, is the latest American community to have a contaminated drinking water crisis. Due to a mechanical malfunction triggered by a power outage, the fluoridation tap was turned up. Over a period of two days, so much corrosive fluoride entered the system that lead, copper, manganese, iron
and aluminum dissolved out of pipes and fixtures and were consumed by unsuspecting residents. Arsenic was also dangerously high. Arsenic and aluminum are common contaminants in fluoridation chemicals.
After dismissing complaint calls for two days, a water worker went to check that fluoridation equipment on a hunch. He turned off the spigot, but the 3,000 households and multiple schools in this section of Salt Lake City were not notified for another week that they should flush their pipes before using city water.
We don’t know how much fluoride was in the water while the fluoride was being pumped into the system, but we know that it was enough so that there were reports of vomiting and burning throats. We also know that when finally tested, the fluoride concentration was over 100 parts per million. The EPA “do not drink” threshold is 4 ppm and 100 ppm is enough to kill. The copper and lead levels in water were over 26 times in excess of the “do not drink” thresholds set by the EPA.
We also know that following instructions from public health authorities, the head of utilities removed the words “Do Not Ingest” from the fluoride warning letter he was compelled to distribute under federal law. Those same public health authorities also placatingly and falsely promise the residents that there would be no long-term health impact from consuming this contaminated water -- not even for bottle-fed babies and pregnant women who reported vomiting. That was a lie.
Other toxic metals aside, fluoride, like lead, is a developmental neurotoxin -- a brain poison. Even small doses of fluoride during pregnancy or early childhood can subtly damage the developing brain resulting in learning disabilities and the immune system resulting in allergies and autoimmune disease.
Several days of high doses of fluoride most definitely can result in irreparable kidney or thyroid damage to consumers of any age. One community reported a spike in heart attacks during a similar overfeed about 40 years ago, which is consistent with early 1950s reports that observed an increase in heart attacks in cities after fluoridation began. Tracking these long-term health impacts, or indeed even the facts of the overfeeds themselves, isn’t routine. It should be.
Both Manchester and Rockport have fluoridation policy on their town agendas for this spring. However, only selectmen or city councilors can implement the process to end fluoridation once begun under Massachusetts law. Popular votes are non-binding.
Regardless of what you believe about “optimal” concentrations of fluoride in water, there have been three fluoridation accidents in Massachusetts this century out of at least 30 overfeeds across the country. That’s about two accidents a year poisoning tens of thousands of people, leaving many with permanent damage. Fluoridation policy is like a game of Russian roulette; someone always gets hurt. Tell town selectmen and Gloucester city councilors to stop gambling with our water and our health. Tell them to end fluoridation on Cape Ann.
Karen Favazza Spencer
Gloucester
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