Dr. Joe Mullen says …
Water fluoridation is an important public health measure. It is listed by the Centre for Disease Control in the United States as being one of the 10 most important public health initiatives of the 20th Century.
It is an initiative which, from the very start, has been supported by the dental profession in Ireland. Indeed, in the 1960s the Irish Dental Association was at the forefront in making the case for what was then a radically new approach to the management of dental decay.
However, it is the case that the justification for the policy water fluoridation requires constant revision. If a better way of achieving the same ends becomes available, we should not hesitate to move away from this policy. Similarly, if evidence of genuine negative health effects came to light, it would require change.
We know that not fluoridating also carries health risks. We also know that if general health risks do exist, they have escaped detection in the 70 years or so that the topic has been researched. But that is not to say they do not exist.
Dr Joe Mullen has been the principal dental surgeon for Sligo-Leitrim since 1995. He is a former member of the North Western Health Board, the Continuing Dental Education Committee of the Postgraduate Medical and Dental Board and the Dental Council of Ireland.
He is currently a member of the European Association of Dental Public Health and of the Irish Expert Body on Fluorides and Health, as well as being the current chair of the Dental Surgeons Vocational Group of IMPACT.
Dr Mullen obtained his BDS and MDPH degrees from University College Cork. He also holds degrees in public administration, information technology and healthcare management.
"Time For Change" 