251956 Rationale for standardizing the recommended fluoridation level

Monday, October 31, 2011: 2:50 PM

Eugenio Beltrán, DMD, MPH, MS, DrPH , Division of Oral Health, Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, Atlanta, GA
In September 2010, the Department of Health and Human Services convened a panel of federal scientists to review new information related to fluoride intake and to develop new recommendations for community water fluoridation. The scientists reviewed the best available information on: the prevalence and trends in dental caries, water intake in children in relation to outdoor air temperature, changes in the percentage of U.S. children and adults with dental fluorosis, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) new assessments of cumulative sources of fluoride exposure and risks of children developing severe dental fluorosis. This new information led HHS to propose changing the recommended level for community water systems to 0.7 milligrams per liter. The recommended level since 1962 is a range of 0.7 to 1.2 milligrams per liter based on the annual maximum daily temperature. An announcement about the proposed change was published in the Federal Register in January 2011. This presentation will show the evidence used by the HHS panel and the rationale used in formulating the new recommendation.

Learning Areas:
Chronic disease management and prevention
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines
Public health or related public policy

Learning Objectives:
Place holder

Keywords: Water, Oral Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have conducted research and summarized the work of others on the new fluoride recommendation for water fluoridation. This scientific evidence was presented for discussion to a panel of federal scientists in charge of providing the new recommendation (published in the Federal Registry)
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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