A few days ago, FAN learned the sad news of the passing of Sharon Begley
from cancer. Sharon was one of the few top notch science journalists in
this country (along with Bette Hileman) who dared risk the wrath of the
medical and public health establishment by covering important
developments on the science of fluoride's toxicity. In this respect,
her first major article appeared in Newsweek (Feb.
5, 1990) before Ellen and I became involved in the fluoridation
battle.This story dealt with an animal cancer study overseen by the
National Toxicology Program that found an increase in osteosarcoma in
male rats. Begley followed this initial article with additional coverage (May 7, 1990), but the study was later downplayed (covered up) by a 1991 US Department of Health and Human Services review.
In 1992, the headline of another Begley article, published in Newsweek: “Is science censored? Ideology may influence what studies get published.” This article covered several issues, such as chlorination,
“Bias
doesn’t end with publication, Harvard’s Chalmers says. In the year of
the spinmeister, science gets spun, too. The New York Times called the
cancer risk from chlorination “tiny,” even though the 38 percent and 21
percent elevated risks for bladder and rectal cancers, respectively, are
380,000 and 210,000 times higher than the level the government defines
as a “negligible” risk. The National Cancer Institute began its press
release on the study, “Chlorinated drinking water offers immense health
benefits.”
As well as fluoride,
“What
many scientists object to is what they perceive as a double standard
that welcomes studies that conclude all is well but erects barriers to
those that raise alarms. One leading cancer journal, for instance,
recently published an industry study, by researchers at the National
Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, that reported an increase in
rare bone cancers among male rats fed fluoride. The journal explained
that it does not publish lab-animal studies anymore. “No one wants to
touch this,” says toxicologist James Huff of NIEHS about the persistent
evidence that fluoride poses some hazard.”
In 2005, in the Wall Street Journal, Begley covered the story of the human osteosarcoma study
by Elise Bassin, and the attempted cover up by Bassin's thesis advisor
at Harvard, Dr. Chester Douglas. This story broke in the Wall Street
Journal on the same day that FAN joined the protest of the American
Dental Association's "celebration" in Chicago of 70 years of water
fluoridation. This protest was organized by Carol Kopf of the New York
State Coalition Opposed to Fluoridation. Carol is now FAN's media
officer.
On
re-reading Sharon's WSJ article, it is impressive to see just how
thorough and succinct she was and the number of sources she cited. She
covered a lot of the history and many of the salient points of the
fluoridation debate. She included a quote from William Maas (Director of
the Oral Health Division of the CDC) admitting that the benefits of
fluoride were largely topical,
“Even
if fluoridation causes just a few hundred cases of osteosarcoma every
year, does the public health benefit justify that risk? “When we started
fluoridating water, we thought to get the benefits it would have to get
incorporated into the enamel before the tooth erupted,” which happens
only if you swallow it, says the CDC’s Dr. Maas. But that turns out not
to be so. Topical fluoride, as in gels and toothpaste, works at least as
well.”
Sharon
rightly opined that such small benefits (from ingestion) should have
put into question the practice of forcing risks of harm on people from
swallowing it - especially young boys who might die from osteosarcoma.
FAN's Research Director, Chris Neurath, had the following to say about Begley:
"...she
was brave. She didn’t shy away from controversial topics. For example,
her many articles dealing with the controversial “third-rail” topic of
water fluoridation are some of the only objective, carefully written,
and illuminating articles on the topic to ever appear in mainstream
media. One of the best compliments I can offer Sharon Begley, from my
perspective as a scientist and environmental activist who follows how
scientific subjects are reported to the general public, is that in her
articles where I had first hand knowledge of the topic, I didn’t find a
single factual error. I don’t think I can say that about any article by
any journalist on a topic where I was thoroughly familiar with the
topic.
To Sharon’s spirit, and to her family: Thank you and may she be an inspiration to others."
Both
Sharon and her husband Edwarth Groth (who had written his PhD thesis at
Stanford on the fluoridation controversy and who later went on to
become the director of Consumer Reports) knew that opining on the
fluoridation debate had proved the end of many careers (the third rail).
Even
though FAN continued to send hot tips on more scientific studies
indicating harm, Sharon never repeated her groundbreaking efforts on the
osteosarcoma story. However, she did pass a hot tip onto a Newsweek
journalist who interviewed me and others, but sadly that story was
spiked by his editors. Most disappointingly, Sharon never tackled the
fluoride-neurotoxicity issue even though she wrote several books that
dealt with the brain. We can only hope that someone of her
journalistic stature and integrity will do so. Meanwhile, FAN joins many
others who mourn her loss and commiserate with her family.
Sincerely,
Paul Connett, PhD
Executive Director
Fluoride Action Network
No comments:
Post a Comment