Heliodex 🏳️🌈🏴🏳️⚧ on Nostr: Ah, I see some of my information may have been outdated: water fluoridation isn't as ...
Ah, I see some of my information may have been outdated: water fluoridation isn't as useful now as it was in the past due to fluoride being provided by other means like toothpaste and tablets (bmj q2173).
First chart is interesting: Huge increases in dental health early on for "fluoridated" countries through water additives and for "non-fluoridated" through other means: mainly toothpastes, and some Scandinavian countries listed there achieved success through tablets. Obviously for countries like the UK and US there's no clear binary option and complex decisions regarding deployment are made more by local authorities (shown in your second chart). DMFT index drops decelerates near the end of the chart as, for most wealthy countries, fluoride toothpaste is used more as the primary method for people that can afford it.
This explains why the newer second chart shows much less of a correlation (and its more nuanced view on a local rather than national level). Older studies and studies on older population members tend to show less correlation for the same reason. Maybe fluoridated water supplies have served their good purpose after all!
First chart is interesting: Huge increases in dental health early on for "fluoridated" countries through water additives and for "non-fluoridated" through other means: mainly toothpastes, and some Scandinavian countries listed there achieved success through tablets. Obviously for countries like the UK and US there's no clear binary option and complex decisions regarding deployment are made more by local authorities (shown in your second chart). DMFT index drops decelerates near the end of the chart as, for most wealthy countries, fluoride toothpaste is used more as the primary method for people that can afford it.
This explains why the newer second chart shows much less of a correlation (and its more nuanced view on a local rather than national level). Older studies and studies on older population members tend to show less correlation for the same reason. Maybe fluoridated water supplies have served their good purpose after all!