Readers' Letters
| NEWS |  | | | | EDUCATION | | | | BUSINESS | | | | SPORT | | |
|
|
|
Why should we have mass-medication?
MY partner and I read the letter from Dr Andrew Mortimore, public health director of Southampton City Primary Care Trust, condoning fluoridisation for the area and were very upset to read his opinion.
Why should we have mass-medication because some cannot be bothered to clean their teeth?
As for children''s dental health, when I was about four years old, my kindergarten in Germany was visited by a local health authority dentist who showed us in a fun and fascinating presentation why it is important to clean our teeth, what happens if we don't and how to do it properly.
Further to this we all got a go at brushing a giant set of teeth he'd brought along with a giant toothbrush under his supervision and were given a free dental health kit along with a picture book and audio-play called "Karius and Bactus", about two nasty bacteria in a child's mouth.
This left such a lasting impression that I have maybe only up to ten times - if that often - in my entire life of 32 years skipped brushing my teeth before I go to bed. My teeth are in excellent condition despite not having used any fluoridated toothpaste for at least a decade.
Why doesn''t the PCT invest in early age dental education instead of making people swallow and ingest on a daily basis what even the toothpaste manufacturer tells you not to? See http://www.youtube.com/atch?v=ds5G0XasTHM for an enlightening presentation by a US-Dentist.
As usual in this country, responsibility is diverted away from the individual in favour of convenience, the opiate of the British masses: people are lulled into a passive stupor by official bodies who are taking care of their health on their behalf - for free - while it is deemed to be unacceptable for people to adjust their habits to a healthier lifestyle in order to achieve good dental health.
Dr Mortimore's is a patronising attitude and I don't think people are all that incapable of looking after their teeth - if people believe fluoride is good for them they can go out and by toothpaste, mouthwash and a supplement, that is their choice, I personally don''t want to be made to take a medication or supplement without being able to choose not to.
SUE BERGER, Highfield, Southampton.
10:00am Friday 9th May 2008
Print 
Email this
What are these links for?
If you liked this article and would like to share it with others on the web who might be searching for good content we've made it easy for you to do it.
At the bottom of all articles, you'll see links to six sites. These sites - commonly called 'social bookmark' or 'social news' sites - have large communities of web users who share and rate interesting, useful and fun things on the web.
Clicking the links will automatically add the address of the story you are reading to one of these sites, letting you share it with others. Each site will ask you to register to share stories. Registration is free and once a member, you can store, recommend and search for stories that interest you.
More on Digg
More on del.icio.us
More on Furl
More on reddit
More on NowPublic/
More on Yahoo!
