“Why should those of us who don’t want fluoride in our drinking water have to go through the inconvenience and expense of buying our drinking water at Walmart, while the people who want fluoride, or far more likely know nothing about the danger it poses to them and their kids in later life, have it conveniently delivered to their homes practically cost free via the public water system? When I say “practically” cost free I mean that the added cost of fluoridation is a very small part of the average water bill.”
I started my reply with stating that I really don’t have a dog in the flouride fight. One of the things that intrigues me with anti-flouride groups is their national approach to banning flouride. If you really don’t like it that much, do something locally. If you live on a Rural Water District, there is likely an elected board, and quarterly public meetings. If you live in a city, go to the city council. You may be surprised to learn that your water isn’t even flouridated. It is not like there is some federalized water pipeline distributing water - it is a very local function. Different water suppliers have very different processes for treatment, alot of times based merely on the preferences of the people in charge. If you don’t like flouride, talk to them.
BTW, I don’t work in the field; but, I am trained in water treatment. Most people would be shocked to know how many chemicals are added to water during the treatment process (not just flouride). They all have a purpose, and help provide us with cheap, clean water, and improve our lives. But, there are always downsides. In my opinion, the most dangerous one in Chlorine. It has been determined that in large amounts, it can cause cancer. For this reason, many plants are going to UV treatment instead of Chlorine. I think this is a much bigger problem than flouride, imho.
You're probably right. I have been on a private 550' deep well drilled through blue granite for the past 11 years and I am always shocked by the taste of chlorinated city water when I visit my sister in a nearby urban area.
I don't like having my kids and grandkids served by a municipal water system that no doubt chlorinates and fluoridates it's water, but I have convinced them to drink and cook with distilled water which is available at Walmart in gallon jugs or in bulk in your own container for a nominal price.
I have my well water tested bi-annually by a state-run lab, and it has required shock treatment several times due to contamination by harmless but smelly naturally occurring biota. I realize that wouldn't be necessary with water from a municipal treatment plant, but I am willing to put up with the occasional annoyance in order to have a non-chlorinated and non-fluoridated water supply.
I plan to install a UV purification system in my well water system if I have another occurrence of the harmless but smelly contamination. After the last shock treatment almost a week's time was needed to rid the water of the chlorine's odor and taste.
Thanks for your comment, it's nice to see that a professional water expert agrees, at least to some extent, with us anti-fluoridation "kooks". I worked for a civil engineering firm many years ago that specialized in designing and building water and sewage treatment plants for commercial real estate developments, and my interest in the purity and safety of water from public water systems has for some reason carried over into my retirement years.