Select Page

Research

Here you will find evidence based information on fluoride and all aspects of water fluoridation including: water fluoridation and infant formula, support for water fluoridation, cost and cost effectiveness of water fluoridation, water fluoridation and the environment, the dental benefits of water fluoridation, the effects on general health, dental health, health inequalities, and dental fluorosis.

Fluoridated Water Modifies Effect of Breastfeeding on Dental Caries

Fluoridated Water Modifies Effect of Breastfeeding on Dental Caries

Breastfeeding is important for health and development. Yet, the interaction between breastfeeding duration and usage of fluoridated water on caries experience has not been investigated. This study examined exposure to fluoridation as an effect modifier of the association between breastfeeding duration and caries. The 2012 to 2014 national population-based study of Australian children involved parental questionnaires and oral epidemiological assessment. Children were grouped by parent-reported breastfeeding duration into minimal (none or <1 mo), breastfed for 1 to <6 mo, breastfed for 6 to 24 mo, and sustained (>24 mo). Residential history and main water source used for the first 2 y of life were collected to group children into exposed (WF) and nonexposed (NF) to fluoridation. Socioeconomic status, infant formula feeding, and sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption data were collected.

Consequences of water fluoridation cessation in Juneau, Alaska

Consequences of water fluoridation cessation in Juneau, Alaska

These results expand our understanding of caries epidemiology under CWF cessation conditions and reaffirm that optimal CWF exposure prevents dental decay. These findings can offer fiscal estimates of the cost burden associated with CWF cessation policies and help decision-makers advance oral health, prevent dental caries, and promote equity in oral health outcomes.

Water Fluoridation and Dental Caries in U.S. Children.. (Slade 2018)

Water Fluoridation and Dental Caries in U.S. Children.. (Slade 2018)

Abstract
Fluoridation of America’s drinking water was among the great public health achievements of the 20th century. Yet there is a paucity of studies from the past 3 decades investigating its dental health benefits in the U.S. population. This cross-sectional study sought to evaluate associations between availability of community water fluoridation (CWF) and dental caries experience in the U.S. child and adolescent population. County-level estimates of the percentage of population served by CWF (% CWF) from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Water Fluoridation Reporting System were merged with dental examination data from 10 y of National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (1999 to 2004 and 2011 to 2014). Dental caries experience in the primary dentition (decayed and filled tooth surfaces [dfs]) was calculated for 7,000 children aged 2 to 8 y and in the permanent dentition (decayed, missing, and filled tooth surfaces [DMFS]) for 12,604 children and adolescents aged 6 to 17 y. Linear regression models estimated associations between % CWF and dental caries experience with adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics: age, sex, race/ethnicity, rural-urban location, head-of-household education, and period since last dental visit. Sensitivity analysis excluded counties fluoridated after 1998. In unadjusted analysis, caries experience in the primary dentition was lower in counties with ≥75%CWF (mean dfs = 3.3, 95% confidence limits [CL]=2.8, 3.7) than in counties with <75%CWF (mean dfs =4.6, 95%CL=3.9, 5.4), a prevented fraction of 30% (95%CL = 11, 48). The difference was also statistically significant, though less pronounced, in the permanent dentition: mean DMFS (95%CL) was 2.2 (2.0, 2.4) and 1.9 (1.8, 2.1), respectively, representing a prevented fraction of 12% (95%CL=1, 23). Statistically significant associations likewise were seen when %CWF was modeled as a continuum, and differences tended to increase in covariate-adjusted analysis and in sensitivity analysis. These findings confirm a substantial caries-preventive benefit of CWF for U.S. children and that the benefit is most pronounced in primary teeth.