Dentists in Utah can tell rather quickly whether their patients grew up in the Salt Lake City area or in a different part of the state.
Salt Lake County, neighboring Davis County to the north and nearby Brigham City – home to about half of the state’s population – have been adding fluoride to the public drinking water for decades with local voter approval while other parts of the state generally have not.
“It’s pretty obvious. If I have new patients come into my practice, I can guess probably eight or nine times out of 10 if they’ve grown up in a fluoridated community,” said Dr. Darren Chamberlain, a pediatric dentist who practices a bit farther south in the state. “The reason I know is because, generally, they don’t have cavities.”…