27 February 2009 - Southampton’s Green MEP Dr Caroline Lucas has slammed the decision to fluoridate the water supply in Southampton, and said the region’s health authorities were "setting a reckless precedent" for future fluoridation schemes in the South East.

She commented: "This ill-advised decision to implement water fluoridation in Southampton demonstrates a contempt for the views of many local people - and for the evidence against fluoridation itself.

"When I raised my concerns about the scheme with the European Commission last year, it admitted that the potential risks from water fluoridation are not yet fully understood. Is it really wise to expose people to a mass-medicating process that has never been risk-assessed?

"Fluoride, or fluorosilicic acid, is an untested hazardous waste, and to add it to drinking water to supposedly prevent tooth decay is disproportionate and cannot be justified. Water fluoridation has simply not been proven to be effective for teeth, and some studies have even indicated links between fluoridation and serious ill health effects, including thyroid problems, skeletal fluorosis, bone cancers and mental problems."

Dr Lucas continued: "This scheme in Southampton amounts to a mass medication of the population, and I will be liaising with my colleagues on the European Parliament’s Environment Committee to question the Commission’s weak position on fluoridation plans like this one.

"In place of mass fluoridation, the UK Government could be improving the health of our teeth through targeted schemes such as providing free toothpaste for poor families. This decision in Southampton sets a worrying precedent for future fluoridation plans in the South East, and we must be vigilant of further attempts to affect our water in this way."

ENDS