Horicon Voting to Keep or Remove Fluoride from Water

In January, the City of Horicon Public Works and Development Committee discussed an agenda item simply titled “Fluoride.”
The topic returned to the agenda for the meeting this month stated as, “Discontinuation of fluoride in Horicon water system due to concerns relating with city employees’ safety.” Committee members Jim Bandsma and Christine Schmitz were in favor of approving the discontinuation of fluoride and recommending the decision to council, while Marie Fenske was not in favor of the discontinuation, but agreed to have it go to council.
Recent Example
For comparison, the two other main communities this newspaper covers, Mayville and Lomira, do not add fluoride to their water supply. To see if a water system is fluoridated, interested individuals can visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) My Water’s Fluoride page, but the best source of information will come from your local utilities department.
Mayville made the decision to remove the addition of fluorosilicic acid in 2020.

U.S. Public Health Services, with support from the CDC, recommends “the amount of fluoride needed in water to help prevent tooth decay is 0.7 parts per million (ppm).” The decision to make it 0.7 was changed in 2015 when it used to be 1.2 ppm because of the availability of other sources of fluoride.
Calcium fluoride, the mineral, naturally-occurring version, is found in Mayville and Horicon’s water supply at 0.4 ppm and an estimated 0.35 ppm, respectively.
Horicon adds roughly the same amount of fluoride to the water supply as Mayville did to reach 0.7 ppm.
Mayville removed the addition of fluoride due to safety concerns, the same reason Horicon stated.
“We did not have separate containment areas for chlorine and fluoride. These chemicals combined have the potential to create toxic gases,” explained Courtney Steger, Mayville Utilities Director. “Our goal was to not jeopardize the safety of our operators or increase costs as we would need to replace corroded scales and other equipment.”
Corrosion was “the biggest concern” because of Mayville’s aging infrastructure.
Some of the dangers to employees include “skin irritation, redness, swelling, burns, throat irritation, hypocalcemia, coughing, nervous system disorders, irregular heartbeat, and nausea,” which were shared on a fact sheet presented by Steger.
Benefits
In an email received by the Committee, Dr. Jack Stellpflug reflected on his experience practicing dentistry in the area for 45 years. He practiced in Beaver Dam “where water has been fluoridated since the early 1950s, like Horicon,” but also practiced in Juneau from 1979 to the early 1990s. He noticed there were far more patients, particularly children, with cavities in Juneau than in Beaver Dam. Well, sometime in the 1980s, Juneau began adding fluoride and the result was positive for the residents and Dr. Stellpflug’s patients. There was a significant reduction in the cavity rate in the children there, which not only resulted in less dental work but more money saved by families.
“Fluoride is nature’s cavity fighter,” says the American Dental Association (ADA).
According to Ilikemyteeth.org, hosted by the American Academy of Pediatrics, “...fluoride works topically on tooth surfaces. Fluoride mixes with saliva, and when the saliva neutralizes acids produced by bacteria on teeth, the fluoride joins the enamel crystals on the tooth surfaces, healing and protecting the teeth from further decay.” It also works systemically in young children drinking fluoridated water. “Fluoride combines with the calcium and phosphate of the developing teeth and makes them more resistant to decay, especially during the first few years after they come into the mouth. Research has confirmed that systemic use of fluoride increases the concentration of fluoride in the surface enamel of teeth.”
The CDC says, “Drinking fluoridated water reduces tooth decay over a lifetime by at least 25%.”
“In addition, dental caries (cavities) particularly affects low-income and socially-marginalized populations,” cited Dr. Russell Dunkel, introducing how fluoridated water benefits everyone.
Ilikemyteeth states, “Fluoridation is the least expensive way to provide everyone in a community with a proven form of cavity prevention.”
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services has found Horicon, a city with a population of 3,682, has a 12.8% poverty rate. That is approximately one out of eight people. It is estimated that Horicon saves $117,824 per year in dental care costs by providing fluoridated water.
It is also important to note that Fenske found that there are only two Medicaid providers for dental care in Dodge County. On a national scale, “100 million Americans lack dental insurance,” according to Ilikemyteeth.
Arguments
Overall, fluoridation is safe, and there are more than 75 years of research to support this. It is actually “one of the most studied public health measures in history,” shares the ADA. It is commonly compared to the process of adding vitamin D to milk, iodine to salt, and folic acid to breads, stated the WDA.
“The cost of a lifetime of water fluoridation for one person is less than the cost of one filling,” adds the ADA. It does not save tax dollars either. As Ilikemyteeth shared, “The typical cost of fluoridating a local water system is between 40 cents and $2.70 per person, per year.”
As stated earlier, there is a natural occurrence of fluoride in our water supply, but there are also other sources of fluoride, like toothpaste. However, it has been found that these sources are not enough, and fluoridated water is the most effective.
For those worried about fluorosis, a condition that can cause white flecks, lines, or spots to appear on teeth as a result of consuming too much fluoride, it only affects young children. The CDC states, “In the U.S., dental fluorosis is mostly mild and cosmetic meaning it does not affect tooth function and is not painful. Moderate and severe forms of dental fluorosis are rare.”
There are other concerns over fluoride consumption leading to lower IQ, cancer, and more. “The National Academies of Science reviewed a draft report with a large number of these studies (studies on fluoride affecting one’s cognitive abilities) and concluded that the report failed to provide ‘a clear and convincing argument’ that fluoride harmed cognitive development,” shared Ilikemyteeth.
The same was found of studies on fluoride increasing the risk of cancer - no link has been found between the two.
Next Steps
The City of Horicon Common Council is meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 25 at 6 p.m. at City Hall. The Council is expected to act on whether or not fluoride will be discontinued from being added to the City’s water supply. If the vote is in favor of the discontinuation, there are plans to notify residents.