Local dentists say the St. Ignace City Council’s decision to eliminate fluoride treatments in the city’s water system will show signs on children’s teeth within a year.

City Council agreed to the cessation of fluoride addition to its city water on June 6 as a cost-saving measure to supplement water and sewer rate increases. It was one of many cuts the city made to shore up a $750,000 shortfall in the water and sewer department, cited in April by auditors. Cutting fluoride from city water will save the city between $12,000 and $15,000, said Les Therrian, director of the city’s public works department.

Scientists discovered in the early 1930s (some believe even long before then) that fluoride in water can fight tooth decay, especially in children up to age 16, as their teeth mature. But fluoridation in U.S. community water systems didn’t begin until 1945. Grand Rapids was the first community in the nation to implement a fluoridation system to its water system, as it proved to be an effective and inexpensive strategy in fighting tooth decay.

St. Ignace and Mackinac Island water systems use surface water, which has little or no fluoride, thus both facilities implemented a fluoridation process in the early 1980s. Mackinaw City, said Village Water Department Supervisor Pat Riviera, uses ground water, which has a small amount of natural fluoride in it already.

Water fluoridation is the process of adjusting the natural level of fluoride to a concentration sufficient to protect against tooth decay. Optimal amount of fluoride in water is 1.0 milligrams per liter, according to the American Dental Association (ADA). Too much fluoride in water, however, can stain teeth, called “fluoridosis.”

Since its inception to water systems, water fluoridation has been recognized by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention as one of the 10 great public health achievements of the 20th century. Two-thirds of all communities in the U.S. provide fluoride in the community water system. As of March, more than 330 Michigan communities provided fluoridated water for their consumers.

Lately, however, that number has been declining, said Jim Rice, Eastern Upper Peninsula district engineer for Michigan Department of Environmental Quality’s Water Bureau.

“Many communities are cutting it because of cost and some labor maintenance problems,” he noted.

Kinross and Stambaugh, now part of Iron River, cut their fluoridation implementation recently, as well, Mr. Rice said.

Local dentists, backed by facts, figures, and statements from national health organizations, say St. Ignace’s cut of fluoridated water will be felt by the local consumer in added dental care and costs.

Dr. Scott Clement and Dr. Mark Mercer of St. Ignace and Dr. John Scherer of Cedarville point to the American Dental Association’s statement that for most cities, every dollar invested in water fluoridation saves $38 in dental treatment costs. Furthermore, according to the ADA, the average cost for a community to fluoridate its water is estimated to range from approximately 50¢ a year per person in large communities to approximately $3 a year per person in small communities.

Dr. Clement treated families from Mackinaw City for several years, and said he could tell immediately which children came from there just by looking at their teeth, because the village did not have a fluoridated water system.

“I absolutely believe the city should continue with it,” he said about the city’s fluoridation system. “I recommend they put fluoride back into the water system because it is going to affect your children and your grandchildren.”

Dr. Scherer always recommends to his patients a dietary supplement containing fluoride and other dental products with fluoride, but Dr. Clement argues that many EUP residents may not be able to afford extra dental care or cannot budget extra dental products.

“Some people can afford only so much,” he said. “Fluoridated water is the most inexpensive and best way to fight cavities. As a dentist, I don’t want people using my services for major repair. We work to help people keep tooth repair to a minimum.”

The city is not against fluoridated water, said Councilman Don Gustafson, it is merely a numbers crunch decision.

“In the overall scheme of things,” he said, “this was not a top priority on my list of things to cut, but it is one of the many we have had to do.”

“It’s one of the things that definitely needs to come back,” said Councilman Willie LaLonde. “We felt it could be cut because people can get fluoride in so many different products now.”

Councilwoman Susan Massaway agrees.

“I do think nowadays, with fluoride in toothpaste and other products, I don’t think it’s as much as a necessity to have it in city water as before,” she said. “It is tough, because we do live in an area where there are some people who cannot afford insurance. Hopefully, things turn around financially so we can bring it back.”

Mr. Therrian said the city heard nothing from the community or local dentists prior to Council’s decision to cut the fluoridation process. Shortly after city action, however, Dr. Clement and his staff sent a letter to The St. Ignace News to promote the necessity of having fluoridated water.

While not a factor in the city’s decision to cut fluoride from the water system, some people argue that fluoride can lead to certain types of cancer and that it can erode water pipes, as well.

“There are always going to be negative theories out there with any issue,” said Dr. Scherer, who calls the negative theories on fluoride “pseudo-science.”

“There are a lot of people out there just promoting quackery,” he said. “They’re not really looking at the actual science.”

Dr. Clement believes people get concerned with any idea, strategy, or plan a government may have for the betterment of the public.

“There’s always going to be theories out there that it is some kind of a Communist plot because the government is putting something in the water,” said Dr. Clement about fluoridation of water. “It is great for the teeth, but the jury is still out there on whether it is good for the rest of the body.”

City Manager Gary Heckman said the city’s financial situation, concerns of possible side effects from fluoride, and with today’s availability of products containing fluoride, made cutting the city’s fluoridated water process reasonable.

“We talked about it at many various public meetings,” he said. “No one in the public had any reservations. Almost all of the surrounding communities are going through the same process as us.”

Re-implementing the city’s fluoridated water process, if Council chooses, is simple, Mr. Heckman said.

“We just need to buy the chemical,” he said. “The equipment to put it in the water is still there.”