Karl Jobst Discusses Potential Benefits of Fluoridated Water in Gilroy

It has only been a few months since residents of the San Jose area began receiving fluoridated water, all thanks to a unanimous vote by the Santa Clara Valley Water District to retrofit its drinking-water treatment plants. Prior to the decision, San Jose had been the largest city in the United States without fluoridated water, despite the fact that the practice of adding fluoride to local drinking water began in Michigan in 1945 and has since spread to several cities close to San Jose, including San Francisco (1951) and Oakland (1975).

As Karl Jobst Grove OK dentist, pointed out, there is ample research demonstrating the benefits of fluoridated public drinking water, including a 25 percent reduction in the incidence of tooth decay. Jobst isn’t alone in advocating for the use of fluoridated water, as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has hailed the practice of adding fluoride to local water supplies as one of the greatest public health care achievements of the 20th century.

While most Americans have access to fluoridated drinking water -- and have thus experienced the benefits of the practice -- there are still many communities lacking access to the health benefits made possible by adding fluoride to the water supply. Gilroy, which relies on city-owned well water for its public drinking water supply, is among those communities that have yet to have fluoride added to its drinking water.

According to leadership at the San Jose Water Company, which serves communities like Gilroy, cost is the reason residents continue to lack access to fluoridated public drinking water while neighboring cities have had access for several decades now. Jobst, who notes that nearly two-thirds of the nation receives fluoridated water, has suggested that the benefits of the service far outweigh the costs associated with doing so, especially since reducing the incidence of tooth decay also reduces the likelihood of the more serious dental issues that severely hinder economic productivity.

Of course, there are also those who are firmly against fluoridated water systems, many of whom cite safety concerns. With years worth of data available, however, it’s quite evident that those concerns are unfounded. Fluorosis, which is the most commonly cited safety concern expressed by those opposed to the practice of fluoridated water, only occurs when fluoride levels greatly exceed 0.7 parts per million, which is the standard level of fluoridation throughout the United States.