The Facts About Fluoridation
DARLING, S. F.
The Facts About Fluoridation The Fight for Fluoridation. Reviewed by S. F. Darling By Don McNeal. Professor of chemistry, Oxford. 241 pp. $5.00. Lawrence College IN his zeal to unlock nature's...
...Such, however, is not the case in the field of public health...
...A historian by vocation, McNeal has taken a difficult scientific subject and given an account that any layman can read and comprehend...
...Therefore The Fight for Fluoridation, by Don McNeal, is timely...
...Even today, some citizens are unwilling to accept the aforementioned public health measures as proven health benefits...
...Despite the fact that the literature is full of thousands of papers by competent scientific workers attesting to the effectiveness and safety of fluoridation, the practice has not been too widely adopted because of public misunderstanding...
...Like the noted statistician Dr...
...Fortunately, in the field of technological progress the task has been easy, for few people would deny the advantages of modern transportation, communication, and the many labor-saving devices that came about through scientific discovery...
...He has recorded the facts objectively, the acceptance of fluoridation in certain communities as well as the failure of others to adopt it...
...Only when the fear of a smallpox epidemic is imminent will such people rush to be vaccinated...
...In it one will find a faithful, condensed account of the story of fluoridation from the beginning over 40 years ago to date, told in a highly readable manner...
...Only when floods contaminate our public water supplies do these people concern themselves about pure water...
...Despite its simplicity, the work is fully documented...
...Although all our national, and most of our state dental, medical and public-health societies (as well as the World Health Organization) have given their complete endorsement to fluoridation, thousands of children are being denied its benefits in many communities because of ignorance of the scientific facts...
...Little wonder, then, that the general public attitude toward the latest public-health measure, fluoridation, is one of suspicion, skepticism and downright opposition...
...Lawrence College IN his zeal to unlock nature's secrets, the scientist has frequently failed to take an interest in educating the general public about his discoveries...
...L. I. Dublin, author of the latest Public Affairs pamphlet "Fluoridation Facts, Not Myths," McNeal is neither a public-health official nor in any way connected with a concern that might benefit if fluoridation were more widely adopted...
...In addition to the story of fluoridation, McNeal describes the struggles of two early proponents in Wisconsin who did so much to advance this public-health measure long before other states were awakened to its beneficial possibilities...
...The use of such practices as vaccination, pasteurization, and chlorination of water supplies were generally opposed by the public when first introduced...
...The author gives a good account of the groups that have been formed to oppose fluoridation, their leaders and their membership...
...The general public should read his account, study the facts, and then act without prejudice so as to help our children grow into healthier adults in those areas where nature has omitted any trace of this beneficial element from our water supplies...
Vol. 40 • September 1957 • No. 39
