Manatee County Commission to discuss proposal to stop adding fluoride to drinking water

Manatee County commissioners will discuss rising concerns about potential health risks associated with fluoride in drinking water on Tuesday, and could soon heed guidance from Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo that calls for an end to the longstanding practice of adding fluoride to drinking water.

Commissioner Amanda Ballard is scheduled to introduce a proposal to do away with the county’s fluoridation process during a public Manatee County commission meeting on Tuesday in response to Ladapo’s guidance, according to the meeting agenda.

The meeting will be held starting at 9 a.m. in the Manatee County administration building at 1112 Manatee Avenue West, Bradenton. It can also be viewed live on www.mymanatee.org/mga.

Several communities in Florida have followed Ladapo’s guidance, with Winter Haven, Naples, Stuart, Tavares and Port St. Lucie in deciding to no longer add fluoride in their water.

Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral found in groundwater, fresh and salt water, rainwater, soil, plants and foods, but it has historically also been artificially added to drinking water as a way to help prevent tooth decay. The federal Centers for Disease Control calls the practice of adding fluoride to tap water systems one of the 10 greatest public health achievements of the last century, according to a report by USA Today. Major medical groups, such as the American Dental Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics, have also endorsed water fluoridation at recommended levels as a way to boost oral health.

Fluoride is added to the water systems of more than two thirds of Americans, the USA Today article reported, and is in dental products from toothpaste to mouth wash, the article noted, adding that it has also been the subject of long-running conspiracy theories.

In September, a federal court in California ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to strengthen regulations for fluoride use in drinking water as result of a lawsuit by the Food & Water Watch, Inc. advocacy group. Two months later, Ladapo issued guidance to local municipalities that recommends against the practice.

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The department’s guidance cited a 2017 study found that prenatal fluoride exposure was associated with lower IQ, a 2019 study found an association with fluoridated water and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, a 2023 study found maternal exposure to fluoridated water throughout pregnancy was associated with decreased child cognitive flexibility, and a 2024 study found higher prenatal exposure was associated with increased child neurobehavioral problems in Los Angeles, Ca., and other scientific studies.

“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 department wrote in the news release.

Based on self-reported data from 2023, the state estimates that more than 70% of Floridians on community water systems receive fluoridated water, according to the health department.

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President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the nation’s top health agency, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has stoked controversy on the issue, saying after Trump was elected last fall that he could try to take it out of water supplies nationwide.

In an interview the day after Trump’s victory, Kennedy told MSNBC “fluoride will disappear.” Kennedy said he would “advise” water districts of their “legal obligation” to constituents, the USA Today article said.