Fluoride can greatly help dental health by strengthening the tooth enamel, making it more resistant to tooth decay. It also reduces the amount of acid that the bacteria on your teeth produce. The fluoridation of drinking water supplies is a well-accepted measure to protect public health and is strongly supported by scientific evidence. Fluoride has been added to public drinking water supplies around the world for more than half a century, as a public health/dental health measure.  The City of Peterborough began fluoridation of municipal drinking water in 1973.

Why is fluoride added to water supplies?
Adding fluoride to water is the best way toprovide fluoride protection to a large number of people at a low cost. The big advantage of water fluoridation is that it benefits all residents in a community, regardless of age, socioeconomic status, education, or employment or dental insurance status. It promotes equality amongst all segments of the population, particularly the underprivileged and the hardest to reach, for whom other
preventive measures may be inaccessible. Another benefit of water fluoridation is the reduction of dental care expenditures. It is estimated that the cost of dental care in Canada reached 11.4 billion in 2007, making it the second largest item in the privately funded health care budget, after drugs.

Related Links:

Health Canada Q & A on fluoride

Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality: Technical Document – Fluoride

Statement from Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health on Drinking Water Fluoridation