Birmingham City Council Celebrates 50 years of Water Fluoridation
Birmingham City Council recently celebrated the anniversary of the beginning of water fluoridation in the city. The council hosted an event to mark 50 years of fluoridation in the city and surrounding area.
Opening the conference, Sir Albert Bore, council leader, spoke about how Birmingham had pioneered fluoridation in the UK and explained how many other cities had followed the example set by Birmingham after the decision was made to ad fluoride to the city’s water supplies in 1964.
According to Sir Bore, fluoridation in Birmingham has had a massive impact on standards of oral health and thousands of people have benefited from the landmark decision made in 1964. Generations of children have enjoyed better oral health thanks to the addition of fluoride.
Statistics from community dental health services in Birmingham show that rates of decay have dropped significantly in the city since fluoridation was introduced. Between 1965 and 1981 the number of children who had milk teeth extracted decreased from 35,000 to just over 9,000 and adult tooth extractions also become much less commonplace, with figures falling from 11,000 to 3,000.
The number of patients requiring urgent dental care also fell significantly in the same time period and improvements are still being seen in the city today.
Dr Adrian Phillips, director of public health, said that water fluoridation is a safe and effective means of reducing the risk of tooth decay, especially in children. Dr Phillips also suggested that fluoridation helps to smooth out health inequalities and is particularly beneficial for those living in deprived areas.
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