Fluoride News for January 2008

FAN Monthly | January 2008
http://www.FluorideAlert.Org

January 28, 2008

Included below is the first issue of Fluoride Action Network's (FAN) new monthly email newsletter. The purpose of this newsletter will be to summarize the key developments that occur each month, and provide links for further information on the web.


1) "Second Thoughts About Fluoride" Reports Scientific American

The January issue of Scientific American magazine contains an excellent review of the fluoride controversy. According to the article, "scientific attitudes toward fluoridation may be starting to shift." According to an accompanying note from the editors: "Some recent studies suggest that over-consumption of fluoride can raise the risks of disorders affecting teeth, bones, the brain and the thyroid gland."

Of particular interest in the Scientific American review are comments made by Dr. John Doull, the Chairman of the recent National Research Council review of fluoride in drinking water. According to Doull, he was surprised to see the amount of evidence linking fluoride to altered thyroid function. "The thyroid changes do worry me," Doull told author Dan Fagin.

Doull added: "What the committee found is that we've gone with the status quo regarding fluoride for many years—for too long, really—and now we need to take a fresh look."

To read more excerpts of the Scientific American article, click here. To read a press release discussing the article, click here.

2) Major Conference on Fluoride Toxicity Announced for August 2008

It's official. Dr Hardy Limeback, from the University of Toronto, has recently announced that Toronto will be the site of the International Society for Fluoride Research's (ISFR) upcoming conference on fluoride toxicity. Titled "Fluoride: Bone & Brain Effects", the conference will feature presentations from research scientists around the world, and will take place in Toronto from August 7th-10th. On the last day of the conference, FAN will be organizing networking and organizing workshops, which should prove of great value to activists working in the trenches. To sign up, and read more about the conference, click here.

3) FAN Launches New Online Video Series of "Professional Perspectives"

On January 16th, FAN launched the first in a series of online video vignettes which will be produced throughout 2008. The series, titled "Professional Perspectives", will feature some of the 1,350+ medical, scientific, and environmental experts who have signed FAN's "Professionals' Statement to End Water Fluoridation."

The first installment of the series features Dr. Bill Osmunson, a practicing dentist who promoted fluoridation for the first 25 years of his professional career. In the short 5-minute video, Dr. Osmunson discusses some of the reasons that led him to reconsider, and ultimately oppose, fluoridation. To watch the video, click here.

So far, the video has already been watched by over 4,500 people, and Carole Clinch from Waterloo, Ontario reports that it was put to use with "great effect" at a recent meeting where a council voted against a proposed extension of water fluoridation in Ontario's Niagara district. (To read more about the Niagara decision, click here.)

(To further increase the impact of this video, please consider forwarding it to your friends, add it to your blog, or send it to your dentist or doctor.)

4) FAN Releases Review of "Top 10 Scientific Developments of 2007"

To help members keep abreast of the latest scientific research, FAN recently posted a review of the "top 10 scientific developments" in 2007. The developments include: new evidence on the damage fluoride may cause to the brain; new evidence on the risk of fluoride poisoning from drinking too much tea; new evidence linking fluoridation chemicals to increased uptake of lead; and new evidence questioning fluoride's purported benefits. To view FAN's "Top 10", click here.

5) FAN's Campaign for Congressional Hearings Gets a Big Boost

January has proven to be a very busy month on the campaign for Congressional hearings! Last week, over 2,000 people — representing virtually every state in the nation -- emailed their Congressional reps calling for an end to water fluoridation pending further hearings.

If you haven't yet sent a letter, you can send (or modify) our form letter online at: http://www.fluoridealert.org/congress. It only takes a few seconds to send this letter, and it will help your Congressional reps know that their constituents care about the safety of their drinking water, and don't want unnecessary toxins like fluoride added to it.

6) More Health Professionals Call for End to End Water Fluoridation

In January, over 150 health professionals — including the former Federal Health Minister of Belgium and many dentists, doctors, PhD scientists, nurses, naturopaths, and chiropractors — came forward and added their name to FAN's Statement to End Water Fluoridation. If you know of other health professionals who may like to sign the statement, please refer them to our online sign-up form.

To read about other events from January, please check out FAN's online newstracker for a chronological listing of news.

Here's to a fluoride-free future! Together we can make it happen.

Sincerely,

Paul Connett, PhD
Executive Director
Fluoride Action Network
paul@fluoridealert.org