Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo is moving ahead of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — posed to be the next Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary — and calling for Florida communities to cease adding fluoride to the water supply.
Ladapo is among the latest to advise against fluoride in the water supply, asserting that there are other ways Floridians can strengthen their teeth without consuming the “neurotoxin.”
A November guidance from the Florida Department of Health cites several studies highlighting possible adverse effects of fluoride exposure in “vulnerable populations,” associating it with neuropsychiatric conditions, particularly among children. The guidance lists many of the concerns frequently highlighted by Kennedy.
“Due to the neuropsychiatric risk associated with fluoride exposure, particularly in pregnant women and children, and the wide availability of alternative sources of fluoride for dental health, the State Surgeon General recommends against community water fluoridation,” the guidance states, listing other ways Florida can support oral health:
• Operation and expansion of school-based preventive dental services.
• County health department dental clinics, which provide dental services to communities.
• Screening and treatment referral in pre-school and school settings.
• Provider education, including training on oral health service delivery for those with special healthcare needs.
• Promotion of healthy habits, with emphasis on a reduction in sugar consumption, through oral health education to communities.
• Providing oral health care supplies to community partners.
• Providing tobacco and vaping cessation resources and services.
WATCH the presser below:
The full guidance can be found here. It coincides with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. making it clear that removing fluoride from American water systems will be a top priority in the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda.
“On January 20, the Trump White House will advise all U.S. water systems to remove fluoride from public water,” Kennedy wrote on November 2 in a post on X.
“Fluoride is an industrial waste associated with arthritis, bone fractures, bone cancer, IQ loss, neurodevelopmental disorders, and thyroid disease,” he said. “President @realDonaldTrump and First Lady @MELANIATRUMP want to Make America Healthy Again.”
During an interview with NPR, Kennedy cited a federal judge who ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has not done enough studies on the effects of fluoride in public water and the impact it has on health. The findings included what he described as a “loss of IQ in our children as well as arthritis, bone breakage, thyroid problems, bone cancer and a number of other diseases.”
One city in Florida — Winter Haven — has already taken steps to remove fluoride from the water supply, voting to do so in a 3-2 decision with hopes of removing it by January 1. Their reasons included concerns highlighted by Kennedy.
“I’ll tell you that after the recent election, President Trump has named Mr. Kennedy to be his H-something-something director, and Mr. Kennedy has made it well known and has publicly said that he wants fluoride out of the water around the entire country,” Commissioner Brad Dantzler said.
“So this issue, we may be at the front of it, but this issue is coming just based upon current events and what’s going on in Washington, DC,” he added.
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