Are Your Water Systems Properly Fluoridating? – What to Know and How to Educate

Monday, April 17, 2023

2:30 PM – 4:00 PM

Location: Seminole A&B

CE: 1.5

Speaker(s)

Tracy J. Boehmer, P.E.

CDC National Fluoridation Engineer
CDC

Slides
Johnny Johnson, Jr., DMD, MS

Pediatric Dentist; President, American Fluoridation Society, Inc.
American Fluoridation Society

Slides
Sarah Peterson, RDH

Community Health Consultant; Community Water Fluoridation Coordinator
Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Oral and Health Delivery Systems

Moderator(s)

Judith A. Feinstein, MSPH

Consultant
ASTDD

Disclosure(s):

Tracy J. Boehmer, P.E.: No financial relationships to disclose

Johnny Johnson, DMD, MS, Jr.: No financial relationships to disclose

Sarah Peterson, RDH: No financial relationships to disclose

Judith A. Feinstein, MSPH: No financial relationships to disclose

Nearly 6,000 water systems practice community water fluoridation (CWF) by adjusting fluoride levels in their water for oral health benefits, with thousands more water systems purchasing water from these systems (reaching over 200 million people in the US). The optimal fluoride level is 0.7 ppm and CDC set a draft operational tolerance range of 0.6 ppm to 1.0 ppm. Based on operational information received by CDC, there are millions of people on fluoridated systems that may not be getting enough fluoride. The seminar will give the current statistics of how many systems may be under-fluoridating including challenges with data collection and reporting. It will then show how My Water’s Fluoride displays the data publicly and discuss developing public-private partnerships to educate CWF decision-makers on harms of under-fluoridation. A state fluoridation panelist whose water systems are consistently meeting target optimal levels will then highlight their proven strategies to address this issue.

Learning Objectives:

Learn about the current water fluoridation statistics that indicate water systems are not receiving enough fluoride.
Determine how to receive this information publicly and how water fluoridation public/private stakeholders can use this information to communicate the importance of effective water fluoridation.
Recognize strategies currently in use to promote fluoridation at optimal levels.