Respected Physician–Legislator Sends Letter to Hundreds of Tennessee Water Districts Advising an Immediate Halt to Water Fluoridation

December 6, 2006 – Dr. Joey Hensley, a respected practicing physician serving in the Tennessee legislature, has issued a letter to hundreds of water districts throughout the state that distribute fluoridated drinking water, advising the districts of his recommendation that fluoride no longer be added to water. The letters were mailed Monday, December 4th. (To see photocopy of letter, click here.)

Dr. Hensley, a House Representative representing all or portions of Lawrence, Lewis, and Wayne counties, has served in the Legislature since 2003. In his letter he provides a sobering assessment of the risks associated with fluoride in water, stating that “…information is now coming out showing that the health risks associated with drinking fluoridated water significantly outweigh fluoride’s limited cavity fighting action.” He adds that “water fluoridation is medication added to water….Giving an unmeasured amount of fluoride through drinking water and not monitoring people’s response to it makes no sense at all and violates fundamental principles of toxicology, pharmacology, and ethics.”

He cites a new report this year from the National Research Council that stated that infants and young children are receiving 3-4 times the dose of fluoride as do adults, on a body weight basis. The American Dental Association last month quietly issued a new recommendation that infant milk formula not be mixed with fluoridated city water, to help prevent a teeth condition known as “dental fluorosis.” Dr. Hensley says that “to think that fluoride affects only infants’ teeth forming cells and somehow miraculously spares all other cells from harm simply strains credulity.”

Pictures of dental fluorosis may be seen by visiting the following web site. Daniel G. Stockin of The Lillie Center, Inc., a firm that has worked to stop fluoridation, says, “Brace yourself. The photos are disturbing and not easy to look at. Scroll down to see all of them. Dental fluorosis is an outer, visible biomarker of a poisoning that is occurring internally, akin to the bluish line that appears in the gums of people poisoned by lead. If fluoride does this to teeth, what do you think it does to soft tissues like thyroid glands or kidneys? And the Centers for Disease Control last year admitted that 32% of school age kids have some form of dental fluorosis, with around 3 – 4% of blacks and Mexican Americans ages 6 – 39 experiencing the moderate and severe forms, compared to just under 2% for whites.”

In light of the ADA’s new recommendation, Hensley asks, “If fluoridation continues in Tennessee, who is going to pay for poor families to use bottled water for formula mixing?” and “How will all mothers and caregivers who need this information obtain it?” Dr. Hensley tells the districts.

“You may be told that a number of federal agencies and dental associations still support fluoridation as safe and effective. A number of other countries think otherwise.” Included with the letter is a partial list of cities and countries that have rejected fluoridation, including countries that have no form of salt fluoridation or water fluoridation, such as Belgium, Sweden, and Denmark, but who have cavity rates as low or lower than the United States according to the World Health Organization.