BMJ  2007;335:840 (27 October), doi:10.1136/bmj.39374.501771.BE

Letters

Fluoridation

The Department of Health's view

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Cheng et al's article on fluoridation of water supplies provides a welcome opportunity to restate our view that fluoridation has reduced the burden of dental disease and offers the potential to address persistent inequalities in oral health.1 As with other health measures, safety should continue to be monitored and the ethical dimension discussed.

We first address the doubts expressed about the Department of Health's objectivity. The Department of Health, in 1999, commissioned the University of York to undertake a systematic review of fluoridation.2 The York team considered 735 research studies that met their relevance criteria and found no conclusive evidence of a causal relation between fluoridation and systemic illness. Nevertheless, we accepted their primary recommendation—that the evidence base for fluoridation needed strengthening—and responded with a commitment to sponsor further research. In 2001, we asked the Medical Research Council (MRC) to identify and prioritise the research needed to inform public policy . . . [Full text of this article]

Barry Cockcroft, chief dental officer for England, Liam Donaldson, chief medical officer for England

Department of Health, London SE1 9BW

barry.cockcroft@dh.gsi.gov.uk


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