Water utility announces it's ditching fluoride—then reveals it did so years ago
The water utility highlighted unsubstantiated health concerns.
Residents of Birmingham, Alabama, were abruptly informed earlier this month that their water utility had decided to stop adding fluoride to city water. Then, days later, they learned that the utility had actually stopped adding fluoride years ago. On March 20, Central Alabama Water (CAW) made an announcement that it had discontinued water fluoridation. The announcement cited "aging equipment" and "increasing maintenance and component replacement" as justifications for the removal of fluoride, which it indicated had already occurred. But the water utility also highlighted unsubstantiated health concerns and noted that people can buy toothpaste and mouthwash that contain fluoride to protect their teeth. Emphasizing that there are "questions about the long‑term health effects," CAW said, "ending drinking water fluoridation allows customers and their health care providers to make more individualized decisions about fluoride use."Read full article Comments
Quick summary
Central Alabama Water announced that it had discontinued water fluoridation, citing aging equipment and maintenance costs and raising unsubstantiated health concerns, even though the utility had actually stopped adding fluoride to Birmingham’s water years earlier.
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