The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has long considered fluoridation of drinking water one of the 20th century’s greatest public health achievements, aiding in the prevention of dental disease in children and adults. But officials in the City of Ridgeland, Mississippi, are now considering whether or not to permanently end its water fluoridation program.
Data collected by the Mississippi State Department of Health shows that “the City of Ridgeland’s fluoride feeding system has been off since February of 2022, based on their last reported sample,” MSDH’s External Affairs and Media Relations Director Greg Flynn said in a Dec. 4 statement to the Mississippi Free Press.
Although Flynn said that fluoridation of public drinking water is “entirely voluntary,” public health advocates told the Mississippi Free Press that permanently discontinuing fluoridation of the City’s public water could affect the dental health of the thousands of customers receiving water from the municipality…