President-elect Donald Trump announced Thursday he will nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary, a vocal critic of water fluoridation, linking it to health risks.
Kennedy posted on social media, suggesting the president-elect would support ending water fluoridation if Trump won the election. He described fluoride as an “industrial waste” and linked it to various health issues, including arthritis, bone fractures, bone cancer, reduced IQ, neurodevelopmental disorders, and thyroid disease
Kennedy, a prominent anti-vaccine activist, holds controversial views on public health. His stance on vaccines raises question about his ability to get confirmed, even in a GOP-controlled Senate.
“For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies that have engaged in deception, misinformation and disinformation about public health,” Trump wrote Thursday on his Truth Social platform. He said Kennedy would “end the chronic disease epidemic” and “Make America Great and Healthy Again.”
Trump said Kennedy would target harmful drugs, food additives and chemicals.
Kennedy’s nomination has alarmed public health officials. Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told The Associated Press, “I don’t want to go backwards and see children or adults suffer or lose their lives to remind us that vaccines work, and so I am concerned.”
The fluoride debate
Meanwhile, there has been an ongoing debate in the U.S. whether local governments should continue adding fluoride to drinking water to prevent tooth decay.
In early October, the American Dental Association (ADA) reaffirmed its support for “optimal levels” of fluoride in community water. This endorsement aligns with those of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC. The ADA’s statement came after a Cochrane Library review of 157 studies suggested that the benefits of water fluoridation may have diminished due to the widespread use of fluoride toothpaste.
Recently, the Florida-based International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT), which advocates for science-based biological dentistry, highlighted the Cochrane review. According to the IAOMT, Cochrane found insufficient evidence that water fluoridation reduces dental health disparities between income groups.
“Once again, the scientific literature shows that fluoride is not only harmful but also ineffective. It is past time for dental professionals to embrace other, more meaningful strategies to combat tooth decay that are effective and non-toxic,” said IAOMT president Dr. Yuko Torigoe.
However, IAOMT is not widely considered a mainstream scientific organization. The group has also lobbied against the use of dental amalgam fillings, citing concerns about mercury content.
(With files from the Canadian Press)
