Reprinted from ADA Morning Huddle, 11/12/24:
National media, including Time.com, reported recent claims from former presidential candidate Robert. F. Kennedy, Jr. that the new Trump administration intends to remove fluoride from the nation’s water supply. The ADA’s well-known position on the public health benefits of water fluoridation is cited in news coverage, such as that adding fluoride to water is a “safe, beneficial, and cost-effective” public health measure and citing studies that it cuts cavities in children and adults by 25%. Immediate-past ADA President Linda Edgar, D.D.S., was quoted by the Washington Post (subscription needed) and USA Today from a previous ADA statement noting, “Decades of research and practical experience indicate that fluoride is safe and beneficial to oral health.” It remains unclear what role Mr. Kennedy will play in the future Trump administration. According to CNN, in a Nov. 9 story by Reuters, the co-chair of Donald Trump’s transition team stated prior to the presidential election that Mr. Kennedy was “not getting a job for [the Department of Health and Human Services].” For more information on community water fluoridation, visit ADA.org.
