More than a dozen people shared their opinions during a Tuesday night public hearing on a proposed law that would fluoridate the City of Oneida water supply.<\/p>\n
There were about 55 in attendance.<\/p>\n
The hearing, the first agenda item of the night at the Oneida Common Council meeting, lasted just shy of two hours.<\/p>\n
About two-thirds of the local residents who spoke opposed fluoridation. Among them was Elizabeth Carnevale of Oneida, who was a school nurse for the Oneida City School District for more than two decades. Carnevale said there are many causes of tooth decay – a condition that pro-fluoride individuals say fluoridating the water supply can help prevent – and that teaching children to regularly brush their teeth could go a long way toward better oral health.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe cannot treat a symptom,\u201d Carnevale said, \u201cWe have to get at the cause.\u201d<\/p>\n
Providing the state Department of Health views on fluoridation was Jay Kumar, of the state DOH\u2019s Bureau of Dental Health. Kumar said fluoridation was one piece in the state\u2019s strategy to improve overall dental health, and said studies show that better oral health can be a state Medicaid cost savings of $24 per child per year.<\/p>\n
Kumar said that when the DOH creates public health programs, fluoridation is one weapon in their arsenal.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are many, many public health problems,\u201d Kumar said, adding that dental decay is among them.<\/p>\n
Referring to the anti-fluoridation group\u2019s claims that residents in other countries are prone to health complications because of high fluoride levels, Kumar said, \u201cour levels are safe and much lower.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kumar said the only known impact fluoridation has on a human body is dental fluorosis, or a discoloration of teeth due to higher exposure of fluoride.<\/p>\n
Sherrill resident Katie Falkenmeyer read aloud a letter she previously sent to the Oneida Common Council, indicating her opposition to fluoridation of the water supply.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis proposal is of grave concern to my husband and me,\u201d her letter said. She went on to tell the council that she has \u201cgone to great lengths to heal various auto-immune diseases\u201d (including thyroid disease), and that \u201cremoving environmental stressors has been a huge part of my healing and the notion that fluoride may be potentially added to our water is terribly concerning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Later her letter asks Common Council to \u201cstrongly consider the health implications of the masses that have weakened or compromised immune systems, to which this would be very harmful.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said she has seen information that shows at least 75 percent of Americans live in areas with fluoridated water. To that notion, she said, \u201cjust because everyone else is doing something doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s healthy, or mean we should, too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Comments from others in opposition to fluoridation included sentiments that it should be the individual\u2019s choice whether or not to consume. Others said fluoride is a toxin, medicine and a poison; also that fluoride can cause health complications such as brain damage.<\/p>\n
Dr. Jennifer Meyers, a Hamilton pediatrician, said fluorosis is a cosmetic issue and noted that a good number of her young patients come in for pre-operative clearance for dental surgery.<\/p>\n
Meyers said that some of her patients don\u2019t have the choice to ask for fluoride, \u201cbut they do have a mouth full of cavities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr. Samuel Barr, an Oneida dentist and a longtime proponent of fluoridation, said \u201cthere has been a lot of talk\u201d about fluoride being a toxin, but noted an April 8 downstate New York case where a mother was convicted of murder after giving her child too much salt.<\/p>\n
Barr added that \u201ceverything can be toxic\u201d if given in too high of a quantity.<\/p>\n
Barr also said that additives such as folic acid and vitamin D are common in many foods for different health benefits, and that they are added without public\u2019s permission.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one is getting hurt by these things,\u201d Barr said, urging those in attendance to consider the impact on public health.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a tough issue to address,\u201d said Common Councilor Michael Bowe.<\/p>\n
Dorothy Hotaling of Sherrill brought up a different point. She said the machinery needed to fluoridate the water supply could be costly.<\/p>\n
Reached Wednesday, city Water Superintendent Arthur Smolinski said the city would need to buy fluoride saturation equipment which costs approximately $40,000. The equipment converts a dry powder substance to a liquid and then pumps it into the system at a dose of .07 parts per million. A new batch would be mixed every two days, he said.<\/p>\n
After the initial set up cost, there would be expenses of about $30,000 per year for more fluoride.<\/p>\n
Smolinski said water bills would rise about 1 percent. Giving an example, Smolinski said if a resident\u2019s water bill is $100, fluoridating the water supply would raise the cost about $1.<\/p>\n
Kumar said there are state grants available for implementing a fluoride treatment program using the municipal water supply.<\/p>\n
Other communities in Madison County that have fluoridated water from the Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA) pipeline include Chittenango and Canastota, and portions of Sullivan, Lenox and Lincoln. In Oneida County, OCWA serves the village of Sylvan Beach and portions of Vienna and Verona.<\/p>\n
A 2014 Water report for OCWA can be seen here: www.ocwa.org\/water-quality\/2014-consumer-confidence-report<\/a><\/p>\n The City of Oneida Water Department also provides water service to the Sherrill-Kenwood District, Durhamville Water District, Prospect Street Water District, the Villages of Wampsville, Oneida Castle, and Vernon, Stockbridge Water District, Taberg Water District, Town of Verona, and Skenandoah-Highbridge Water District, and residents along the transmission line. Those districts would also be impacted by fluoridation if passed by the Oneida Common Council.<\/p>\n For details about the current water supply, view the 2014 water supply report, here: www.oneidacity.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/waterreport.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n According to the city Water Department, currently, the water supply is chlorinated to kill any pathogens that may be present. Further, in order to inhibit corrosion of distribution pipes, zinc orthophosphate is added to the water to provide a thin protective coating to pipes.<\/p>\n The proposed fluoridation law will be put to vote at a future Common Council meeting.<\/p>\n